Padawan Kakarot
by Gammer
Summary: The explosion of planet Vegeta sends baby Kakarot to Coruscant, where he is trained as a Jedi. But they aren't the only ones who find a young Saiyan baby. Broly comes under the wing of Darth Sidious. Can Kakarot stop the rise of the Empire?
1. From Vegeta to Coruscant

Padawan Kakarot

Chapter 1: From Vegeta to Coruscant

Disclaimer: Goku and all Dragonball related characters belong to Akira Toriyama. Everything Star Wars belongs to Geroge Lucas. Course if they sue just means another 100+ bucks for them…..

"Freiza!" Was the cry that sounded above planet the Far Outer Rim planet called Vegeta. The copper colored planet spun slowly on its axis. Both planet and inhabitants unaware of the clash occurring overhead.

Countless soldiers dotted the deep space above the planet, surrounding one warrior who managed to take down a good portion of their forces. They varied in species and colors but the one aspect they had in common was their expression of fear as they watched their lord, Freiza rise out of his ship.

Bardock let out a smug chuckle as he watched Frieza show himself. Finally he was getting somewhere. Finally he'd show this monster the power of the Saiyan race! His squad and his entire planet would be able to rest easy after this one last battle. It all depended on him!

"Freiza! You've long enough. Actually it's been too long for my taste!" he barked. The mutant freak sat in hover chair (too weak or lazy to fly on his own) and just raised a finger. Bardock mentally scoffed. Like one finger could take down a Saiyan like him!

"We quit! All of us!" Bardock continued. "Got it? We don't work for you. We're free! Find someone else to do your dirty work!"

Despite the bold declaration, Freiza's face remained unmoved.

"Oh yeah…There's one last thing!" With those words Bardock charged up his signature Riot Javelin attack. The blue energy circled around his hand as Bardock poured a good portion of his chi into it. This was it, this will be the attack to end the monster's reign once and for all.

"This is for all the people we killed in your name. I wish we were never foolish enough to obey you. Here have it!"

The attack soured through the void towards the overlord who finally broke his stoic façade. But it wasn't the look of shock and horror the Saiyan expected.

It was one of psychotic glee.

The small orange ball on the mutant's finger instantly expanded to the size of small sun. The ball absorbed Bardock's attack like it was nothing.

"Huh? No way!" It was only a matter of seconds before the ball consumed all of Freiza's own soldiers along with Bardock as it made its way towards the unaware planet.

As the life drained from the warrior's body fate granted him one last vision. His son, Kakarot standing before Freiza, ready to avenge them. The sight allowed Bardock one last smile before his body failed.

"KAKAROT!"

It only took a few seconds for planet Vegeta to be lost in a single great explosion, much to the glee of its executioner.

"Oh my!" Freiza laughed. "This is….stupendous! Wow what a show! HAHAHAAAHA!"

However, the tyrant overlooked one sole pod and one solid green orb that escaped the planet moments before. The explosion rocked both vessels, activating the hyperdrive for the pod and disrupting the concentration of the infant in the green orb.

The pod, containing Kakarot was hurled into FTL speed, leaving the known galaxy into a galaxy far far away.

OOOOO

It was a normal morning for Grand Master Yoda. The petite Jedi sat in the meditation chamber of the Jedi Temple. After countless years of practice it took Yoda merely a few seconds to find his center within the Force.

Events passed before his eyes. Past, present, and flashes of the future. And what the master saw in the future disturbed him. A pod crashing…a child….a giant ape….? Then darkness. Yoda mentally dove into the Force for further understanding when a pulse struck his center like a hammer. Something was coming. Something with great power.

The hissing of the door opening snapped the master out of his meditation. Mace Windu entered. Small bead of sweat from his brow and the slight weight in his breath indicated he had just come from a training session. The tall Jedi master greeted Yoda but instantly noticed the master's troubled face.

"What is it?" he asked.

"A disturbance in the Force I feel."

"A disturbance?" Mace repeated, his eyes instantly becoming alert.

"Unusual this feeling is," Yoda said. "Coming soon the source is."

"Then we will be ready."

OOOOO

For Yoda, soon meant another three days. Mace often wondered if Yoda's age affected his sense of time. But the first lesson every Jedi learned was patience.

Word of a small pod crashing into the under city of Coruscant quickly spread to the Temple and Senate. Chancellor Valorum ordered the Jedi to investigate. The council agreed to send a small team of masters to look into the crash. The Jedi could sense the odd disturbance coming from the pod, they could not take any chances.

Mace found himself going into the lower levels with Qui-Gon Jinn, Master Ki-Adi-Mundi, Master Luminara Unduli and Master Plo Koon.

"What do we hope to find at this crash site?" Qui-Gon asked.

"It could be anything," Master Mundi replied. "Never have I felt this kind of power around a single life form."

"I do hope it isn't a threat," Luminara said.

"If it were threat, I doubt the Chancellor and Master Yoda would send only us," Plo Koon pointed out.

"Regardless, sending the five of us seems quite excessive," Luminara replied.

"Speculation will not get us close to an answer," Qui-Gon said curtly. "We will only know for certain until we get there."

Mace glanced at the breaded master and internally sighed. Ever since the fall of his first apprentice Xanatos, Qui-Gon seemed to have retreated into himself. He had become even more distant and became obsessed with the Living Force. But Mace knew he wasn't one to talk. He wasn't exactly the warmest person in the Order himself. Still Qui-Gon had been taking it to extremes that made even Mace raise an eyebrow.

"I agree with Qui-Gon," he said. "The answer will present itself at the crash site."

A nod of agreement from the other masters closed the matter and the trip to the under city continued in silence.

OOOOO

The crash site was as lively as Mace thought it would be. A large crater, several feet deep lay in the center of the street. Countless bystanders and members of several underworld gangs circled around the pod.

The crowd instantly quieted down when they saw five Jedi masters approach the site. One or two of the gang members attempted to hold their ground, but one glare from Mace forced them to back down.

"How shall we proceed master Windu?" Mundi asked. Mace eyed the pod through the Force and could feel the specimen inside. Yoda had been right. It was a….unusual feeling. Whatever was inside held great potential. For good or ill he had yet to determine.

"I'll approach it first," Mace announced. "Stay on guard should anything happen." A nod from his fellow masters and Mace leapt into the crater.

Years worth of training allowed Mace to approach the vessel without fear, but still, he couldn't help the feeling of nervousness and curiosity run up his spine. With a hand close to his lightsaber and his mind already submerged in the Force, Mace pushed a button on the side of the vessel allowing it to open.

A loud hiss and a dense cloud of steam filled his senses. The moment the hiss died down a loud cry reached his ears. Mace fanned through the steam and surprise made his stomach jump. Inside the pod was a human infant. Or that's what Mace thought until he saw the monkey tail.

The child also had hair like Mace had never seen. It was a dark shade of ebony and stuck out at almost every angle. A quick look at the child exposed genitals revealed it to be male. Mace wrapped the boy in his tunic and stepped out of the pod with small sigh of relief.

"Master Windu, what did you find?" Luminara asked.

"A child," Mace replied, stepping out of the crater. "Humanoid."

"A child was the cause of this commotion?" Plo Koon said in disbelief.

"This will be one for the archives," Mundi said with amusement.

"I find it hard to believe a child was the cause of what we were sensing," Luminara protested. "And what do you mean by humanoid? He looks like another human."

Mace held up the boy's tail as proof.

"What an odd species," Qui-Gon said quietly. "Was he alone?"

"It would seem so," Mace replied. "Although it does beg the question, who would send a child here alone?"

"Questions better left to be answered at the Temple," Plo Koon said indicating the gathering crowd.

"Agreed."

"Do we at least know the name of this boy?" Luminara asked. Mace pressed his hand on the boy's head and dove into his mind. He saw a viewing room with countless other babies like him around. Overseers commenting on power levels and destructive capabilities. He zeroed in on the boy's holding pod and saw his name written below.

"Kakarot," Mace answered returning to the present. "His name is Kakarot."

OOOOO

"A child caused this commotion?" Chancellor Valorum said in both disbelief and amusement. "Are you sure?"

"Positive Chancellor," Mace answered. He sat across from the head of the Galactic Republic with Yoda next to him. "The boy seems to be, at most, a month old. And we have yet to determine his planet of origin."

"I see. Well rest assured I will study the child's pod for anything that will allow us to identity his species and send him home if necessary."

A mutual look from Mace and Yoda told Valorum that a trip back was not what the two masters had in mind.

"You have different arrangements for our visitor then?"

"Training we wish to give the boy," Yoda answered. "Great power he has. Great consequences if misused."

"I see," Valorum said. "Then I will trust your judgment on this matter Master Yoda." Yoda gave the Chacellor a nod of appreciation. "Well gentlemen if there is nothing else, I have a meeting to attend to."

The three men rose, each with the child's future in mind.

OOOOO

Korriban was a lifeless world. Countless years of war, pillaging, raids, and betrayal had left the world barren and empty. The remnants of the dark lords tombs were nothing but empty bricks and skeletons. Any treasure or fabled Force ghosts long gone or banished.

This world held no sentimental or practical value for Darth Sidious, yet the Force granted him a vision. Something powerful would land here in a few short minutes and Sidious refused to allow the Jedi to find it first.

The dark lord paced the barren sand trying hard not to give into impatience. It had been four standard hours since he had landed on this world and managed to pinpoint the exact location of the landing site. His vision indicated it would be early evening on Korriban when the source of this power would land. Sidious looked at the slow setting sun and knew it would only be a matter of time.

The Dark Lord was rewarded ten minutes later. A small dot in the sky caught his attention. It descended onto the planet in a slow balloon like fashion. It was an odd green ball of energy. Energy that Sidious had never felt before. His mind already raced about way to harness this energy in his quest for dominance.

The ball reached the surface and revealed a man holding a child. Sidious instantly sensed the power in the infant. The man, the boy's father Sidious assumed, looked around unclear of where he was. His eyes fell on the Dark Lord before him and rushed towards him.

"Where is this place? Who are you?" he demanded.

"What is the name of that boy?" Sidious asked ignoring the questions.

"Broly. His name is Broly," the man answered. "And I am Paragus."

"Come with me. I will answer all your questions."

Paragus soon fell into step with cloaked man, not knowing what fate had just dropped him into.

AN: So what did you think? Despite my being a Star Wars fan for the longest time, this is my first Star Wars fanfic. So I'm still getting the hang of writing the Jedi. So if you have any suggestions please let me know. So who will train Kakarot as a Padawan? Will Sidious take Broly on as a Sith apprentice? Or does Sidious have other plans for the future Super Saiyan? How will the Jedi handle Kakarot's Oozaru form? These questions will be answered in the next installment of Padawan Kakarot. See you then!


	2. First Steps

Padawan Kakarot

Chapter 2: First Steps

_Eight Years later _

"Younglings," a gentle voice called both vocally and through the Force. "It's time to get up."

Kakarot stirred in his bed. The thought of going back to sleep crossed his mind, but a gentle push from the voice told him otherwise. The monkey boy let out a loud yawn while he stretched his short body.

An annoyed grunt told him that he wasn't only one not ready to get up yet. Kakarot glanced over across the small room to the bundle still wrapped in his sheets.

Kakarot silently jumped off his bed and landed softly next to the bed. A grin spread across his face as he inched closer to the bundle. He took a deep breath and yelled:

"HEY PIK GET UP!"

The blue Twi'lek boy jolted out of his slumber as if lightning struck him. His shocked body twisted in his sheets causing the young alien to tumble to the floor hitting his head. Needless to say he was not assumed when he heard Kakarot's satisfied laughter.

"I got you good that time didn't I, Pik?" the monkey boy managed to say in-between his joyous giggles.

Pikota Lorkesh shook his head, hoping there was no bruise on his lekku. From the way they were twitching in irritation at Kakarot, he had nothing to worry about.

"That wasn't funny Kakarot!" he protested, his blue skin darkening.

"Yes it was!" the monkey boy chuckled. "In fact I-.." But a sharp piercing pain ran up his spine, cutting him off. Kakarot gritted his teeth trying not to cry out but to no avail.

"YOW!" he yelled jumping into the air. When he landed he shot a half playful, half serious glare at his friend.

"Now we're even," Pik said with a smile.

"That wasn't funny," Kakarot said massaging his now sore tail. "You know how much that hurts me."

"Like I said," Pik repeated. "We're even." Kakarot gave Pik one last look before breaking into a laugh.

"I guess we are."

"Younglings," a stern voice said from their doorway. The two boys turned to see their Jedi Minder, Shila Madre eyeing them with a disapproving look.

She was a middle aged woman with several lines on her face from the years of bringing up countless younglings. Her drawn back hood revealed the hints of gray in her black hair that was tied back and in a bun. Her oval face and pointed chin often gave her an unintentional rigid and strict look, but the younglings knew better. Master Madre was a very kind and loving woman, unfortunately for Kakarot and Pik, they mostly saw her stern side.

"Yes Master Madre," they said in unison.

"If you are quite finished with your roughhousing, would you two please join the rest of your clan in the corridor? So we may start today's lesson?"

The two boys looked past the irritated den mother and saw the other eighteen members of their youngling clan standing in the doorway snickering at their misfortune.

"Sorry Master," Pik said sheepishly.

"Yeah sorry," Kakarot repeated, though without Pik's shameful eyes.

Shila sighed and nodded in acceptance. The two boys rushed out to join their clan sibling in their line.

"Getting trouble a little early today aren't we, Kakarot?" a human boy with a messy blonde hair in a bowl cut.

"Yeah," Kakarot replied with a grin. "But just wait, Tourin you'll be next before this morning is over."

"He'll probably forget a verse in the code today," a Togruta girl said with a snicker.

"I will not!" Tourin insisted his face beginning to flush. "You'll probably cut yourself with your own lightsaber Aysha!"

"Will not!" Aysha barked, her rusty skin darkening and lekku beginning to twitch.

Shila loudly cleared her throat, breaking up their bickering. She shot the foursome a look that silenced them all instantly.

"Guess it's all of us this time," Pik chuckled.

"Now then," Shila said when all attention was on her. "Recite the Jedi Code, in unison, loudly and clearly this time. Any delays or missed lines means we must repeat."

A groan erupted from her charges, but a stern look from their minder told the younglings there was to be no argument.

"Hear that Tourin?" Kakarot nudged the human boy with a snicker. "Don't mess up."

"Shut up Kakarot."

"Ready….begin."

There was a slight delay as the younglings took a collective deep breath. Both in preparation and as a stalling means. The Jedi code had simple lines, but it was always easy for them get mixed up on certain verses.

"There is no emotion, there is peace," they began. So far so good, Kakarot thought. Spending all morning reciting the code was boring. The sooner they finished it, the sooner they could get to something more fun, like the sparring ring or the obstacle course or blaster deflection. Kakarot felt his tail twitch in excitement at the thought of any of those classes. So much so he almost missed the next line.

"There is no ignorance, there is knowledge." Pik and Aysha gave the monkey boy a look. Kakarot could only give his trademarked grin as an apology.

"There is no passion, there is serenity." Pik nudged Kakarot and motioned to Tourin whose forehead began to glisten. Tourin always mixed up the lines around here. Pik and Aysha had tried helping him not too long ago. They both knew the code as well as they knew their lekku, but Tourin could never fully remember it. Kakarot almost winced when the next line came up.

"There is no chaos, there is love." Kakarot sighed when he heard Tourin's error. There goes the sparring ring.

"Tourin," Master Madre said, stopping the exercise. "I believe love is not in the code."

Kakarot didn't have to look to know that Tourin's face was redder than Aysha's skin. The rest of their clan eyed the boy with annoyed looks, knowing what was coming next. The blonde boy looked as though he would faint from all the eyes on him. He hated being the center of attention.

"Actually Master," Kakarot piped up. "That was me."

"Kakarot?" Shila eyed the boy, who flashed his teeth in a grin.

"Sorry I was thinking how much I loved breakfast and I guess it just slipped out."

Shila sighed. She didn't have to be Force sensitive to know what Kakarot was up to, but for both his and Tourin's sake she went with it. "Breakfast has no place in the Jedi Code, Kakarot."

"I know, sorry, again."

"From the top," Shila commanded, earning a groan from the younglings. Collective eyes turned to Kakarot in a glare, but the monkey boy just laughed it off.

"Thanks Kakarot," Tourin whispered.

"No problem."

OOOOO

It took three more tries before the younglings left the corridor. And it wasn't to the sparring ring or to the obstacle course like Kakarot had hoped. It was to the Archives.

"Oh man, I hate the archives," Kakarot groaned on the way.

"I don't get how you can hate it," Pik said. "There's so much knowledge there."

"Yeah, like the Jedi master who took on Lord Kaan and the Brotherhood of Darkness," Aysha said excitedly. "That was a great lesson!"

"And the lesson on the Jedi Civil war!" Tourin added. "Revan sounded so cool!"

Kakarot couldn't help but smile. Reading about all those great battle and warriors was exciting, he had to admit.

"Okay, those lessons were kind of cool," he acknowledged. "But everything else after that is so boring." It was always this Jedi negotiated peace on this planet, or found this artifact, or found a new meaning the in Jedi code. It was lessons like that that made Kakarot wish the Sith would return so they could hear about more battles.

"Jedi can't fight all the time Kakarot," Pik said, his eyes already brightening as they approached the archive entrance. "Knowing stuff is just as important."

"Yeah you only don't like the archives cuz you can't stand still for more than a minute," Aysha laughed.

"I can to!" Kakarot insisted.

"Pfft, doubt it," Tourin chuckled.

"Can to. I bet half my breakfast I can!"

"Deal!" the trio said instantly before Kakarot could realize what he just agreed to.

"Welcome younglings," Jocasta Nu said with a bright smile. As the younglings entered the great library, Kakarot could already feel his tail twitch. This was going to be a long two hours.

They sat in a small semi-circle in the rotunda. It was still early morning, so there was a small amount of foot traffic. Master Nu began with a quick quiz on what they had learned the previous lesson. Kakarot barely paid attention; he was too busy resisting the urge to play with his ever twitching tail.

He closed his eyes and grinded his teeth, focusing all his energy on not moving. For my breakfast, for my breakfast, he kept repeating to himself. Much to his annoyance, his three friends only found his plight funny. His tail twitched again, making Kakarot just want to jump up from his seated position and run around the archives. This sitting still stuff was tough!

"Kakarot," he heard.

"Yes master?" he responded.

"Perhaps you name three of the Lost Jedi trained by the Jedi Exile?"

Crap! He really didn't like the Jedi Exile's story. It didn't make any sense. He always lost focus everytime he heard a mention of echoes or imprints left in the Force. So much so that by the end Kakarot was left wondering what all that trouble had been about. The fact that the story ended so abruptly didn't help matters either.

"Uh…the lost Jedi were…."

"Yes?"

Kakarot looked to his three friends for any help, but they were too busy snickering at his plight to help. The waiting expression on Master Nu made Kakarot pick the first names that popped in his head.

"Bastila Shan, Lord Hoth and, Caleb?"

Master Nu sighed and shook her head. Shila also gave Kakarot a disapproving look.

"No Kakarot. Not only did none of those three ever meet, but only two of them were Jedi."

"Oh…sorry."

"Anyone else care to venture a guess?"

Pik and Aysha's hands went up instantly.

"Young Aysha?"

The Togruta girl stuck her tongue out at her friend in satisfaction before answering.

"Atton Rand, the reformed Visas Marr, and Brianna the Handmaiden, who went succeeded Jedi Master Atris as historian of the Jedi order," she said without taking a breath.

"Very good young one."

"Show off," Pik whispered in annoyance.

"You just need to faster," Aysha replied as she sat down.

"She just likes you better."

"Either way you both are doing a lot better than our monkey boy over there," Tourin said motioning to Kakarot who began physically twitching.

"I give him another standard minute before he cracks," Pik chuckled as Master Nu began lecturing on how the Lost Jedi helped rebuild the shattered Order.

"A minute?" Aysha laughed. "That's giving him too much credit."

"How about the next thirty seconds?" Pik proposed.

"Even that's pushing it," Tourin snickered.

"Now Younglings," Master Nu said catching the trio's attention. "It's time to get up and…"

But at the sound of "get up", Kakarot jumped to his feet and started jogging in place as if he had to relieve himself.

"We can move now? Awesome!" he exclaimed and began running around the rotunda in joy.

In his joy, Kakarot failed to hear the scolding of Master Nu and Shila, the laughter of his youngling clan, and the warnings of his three friends who he was about to crash into.

A loud _whomp_ echoed throughout the chamber as Kakarot ran into two people. Their legs were so hard and tone that the young monkey boy was knocked to his behind in an instant.

"Mind your step youngling," a stern, no nonsense voice said.

"Yes," a voice more warm, but just as annoyed said. "One never knows what the next step will bring."

Kakarot looked up and saw the faces of Master Mace Windu and Qui-Gon Jinn staring down at him. Kakarot's face instantly went red. The two masters looked at him with curious and analyzing eyes. As if they were watching a wild animal out of its habitat. It seemed like an eternity before Shila ran over to him for damage control.

"Masters you have my most sincere apologies," Shila said frantically bowing every other word. "I do not know what got into him."

"No harm done Master Madre," Mace said easily. "Just tell the Youngling to mind his step."

"Kakarot, don't you have something to say to the masters?" Shila said sternly at Kakarot as she gripped his arm.

Kakarot gaped up at the two masters, at a loss for words. He didn't know why but something in him felt excited. Like meeting two long lost friends, or coming up for air after going underwater.

"Kakarot!" Shila hissed, snapping the boy out of his trance.

"I'm sorry masters," he said finally with a bow.

"Apology accepted young one," Qui-Gon said amicably. "Mind your step in the future."

"Good luck with your studies," Mace added. The two masters bowed to Shila and the rest of the class before venturing deeper into the archives.

Kakarot watched them go with wide eyes. Shila's lecturing and harsh grip were lost on him. Even the snickers and stares from the rest of the class didn't catch his notice. His eyes remained fixed on the masters until they disappeared from his view. Only Pik managed to break his trance with a quick tug on his tail.

"Coruscant to Kakarot, are you home?" Pik said. Kakarot shot the Twi'lek a look for pulling on his tail again.

"What's the matter with you?" Pik asked, ignoring the glare. "You're staring at Master Windu and Master Jinn like they have four heads or something."

With his mind active again and out of the presence of the masters, Kakarot could finally put into words what he had felt.

"They're strong," he whispered.

"What?" his three friends said in unison.

"They're really strong! This is awesome!"

The trio could only stare in confusion as they watched Kakarot jump around as if he just received two new toys.

AN: Hey all, back again with another installment. Mostly an introduction chapter. Originally I was just going to jump into Kakarot becoming a Padawan and getting his master. But then I thought that wasn't making good enough use of the story. So I decided to hold off on that for later. And I like it this way since there will be more development all around. Kakarot's friends I made up on the spot, still deciding on what role they'll play. I'm up for suggestions on that part. Oh and Kakarot met his teacher this chapter. Feel free to guess. I wanted to show what Broly was up to, but once again decided to hold that off till later. Anyways hoped you enjoyed this chapter. See you next time.


	3. The Saiyan and the Sith

Padawan Kakarot

Chapter 3: The Saiyan and The Sith

Kakarot's excitement followed him all the way to breakfast. The monkey boy didn't even seem to notice or mind that half of his beloved breakfast went to his friends. He sat in the cafeteria, his tail wagging, and a wide grin on his face, unaware of the confused looks from his three friends. The strength his felt from the two masters still running through his mind. He could feel his skin crawling and his stomach doing flips. He just wanted to find one of them again and throw a punch or some kind of attack, just see how strong they really were!

The grey haired one, Qui-Gon, Kakarot heard his name was, walked by the sparring ring every now and then. Sometimes passing by masters got involved the lesson or demonstrated saber techniques for the younglings. Maybe today Qui-Gon would pass by and get involved. Then Kakarot could see his technique first hand. The thought of such a demonstration made Kakarot munch down on his rationed breakfast even faster.

"Uh…Kakarot…." He heard Pik from across the table.

"Yeah Pik?" he replied between mouthfuls.

"Are you feeling alright?"

"I feel great!" He swallowed entire handful of pears as if for emphasis.

"Yeah, there's no question of that," Tourin said, his face twisted up in disgust at Kakarot's display.

"The question is why?" Aysha finished. "Not only did you embarrass yourself in front of Master Windu and Master Jinn, but also embarrassed Master Madre too. Don't you feel just a little ashamed of yourself?"

Kakarot gave her a confused look. "Why should I be? I met two really guys today and that's awesome!"

The trio let out a collective groan. Kakarot was impossible.

"When's saber practice?" the monkey boy asked as he chugged down his fruit juice.

"At the end of day," Pik said, then glanced at Aysha with a chuckle. "I bet Aysha is relived."

Aysha flushed. (As much as Kakarot could tell.) "Shut up, Pik!"

Kakarot's tail dropped. Saber practice was farther away than he thought. Hopefully one of those masters would swing by. He just had to see them fight. But it wasn't just that. After an entire morning of just sitting around listening to lectures about history, the Jedi code, and the importance of being one with the Force, Kakarot just wanted move around. He wanted to take up a practice lightsaber and slash at anything the masters told him to. Or go through the fast paced trial the obstacle course put him through. It was an ever changing course that tested how fast a Jedi could react to his surroundings. Kakarot always had to be on guard, and ready for anything during his runs. With both those classes, he didn't have to worry about mixing up phrases or old Jedi figures. He just had to run, jump, and dodge. Why couldn't any of those things come faster?

A groan from Pik snapped Kakarot out of his musings. "What is it?"

Tourin sank lower on the bench trying to make himself smaller. "It's Bruck."

"Not him again," Pik groaned.

Kakarot looked over his shoulder at the white haired-boy who entered the cafeteria. Bruck Chun wasn't a nice person. He had a fierce temper and went out of his way to tease other apprentices. His newest victim was Pik. Why, Kakarot didn't know. Aysha had gone to Master Madre on Pik's behalf and Bruck did leave Pik alone when she was around. But every time she wasn't Bruck always squeezed in a quick shove or whispered some insult to Pik. Kakarot always told the twi'lek to stand up to the bully, but Pik never had the nerve. Bruck was four years older than them. The bully frequently used his greater size and further developed lessons to his advantage. Kakarot didn't understand why that stopped him. If it were him, it would only make him want to fight the bully all the more. When he won it would be even more satisfying.

Kakarot and Tourin turned to face Bruck along his only real friend Aalto, while Aysha began to move Pik out of the cafeteria.

"Well if it isn't my friends monkey boy and tumbling Tourin," Bruck greeted with a laugh.

"You're not my friend," Kakarot said plainly.

"You're right. Where's my real friend, that wimpy twi'lek brat?"

"His name is Pik," Tourin said.

"Yeah, yeah," the bully shrugged. He glanced over the young defenders and saw Shila enter the room with Aysha in tow. The older boy groaned and began to back away.

"You guys are no fun right now anyways," he turned to Aalto. "Come on lets go find Oafy-Wan. Oh and monkey boy, tell that twi'lek baby he can't hide behind his mommy forever."

The older boys left, leaving Kakarot with a sour taste in his mouth. Pik had to stand up for himself, but Kakarot was very tempted to do it for him. He saw Master Madre follow the two bullies, no doubt to give them a stern talking to. But that wouldn't stop them for long.

"A-are they gone?" Pik asked from behind Aysha.

"Yeah," Tourin nodded. "But really Pik, you need to stand up to those guys. Heck we'll help you, right Kakarot?"

"Yeah! They won't stand a chance against us!"

"Fights are against the rules," Aysha reminded the boys, quickly defusing their passion. "You guys could get in big trouble."

"You're no fun, Aysha," Kakarot pouted.

"What's the point of being a Jedi if you aren't going to follow the rules?" Aysha shrugged.

"The rules can be broken every now then," Tourin muttered.

"Then we'll get him in the sparring ring!" Kakarot exclaimed. "There's no rule against that is there?"

"Well….no…" Aysha said, not liking Kakarot's chain of thought. "But the sparing circle is supposed to be a learning experience for both you and your opponent."

"Yeah, hopefully Bruck will learn not to bully Pik anymore," Tourin replied. "Right Pik?"

"I guess so…" the twi'lek muttered. "But Aysha's right, you guys shouldn't bring problems like that into sparring."

"Oh lighten up," Tourin said with an eye roll. "Bruck's clan is having sparring practice with us today, so this is your chance Pik. We're all right behind you, right Kakarot?"

"Yeah!" the monkey boy declared, completely elated.

Aysha sighed and went back to her breakfast.

Boys were so stupid.

OOOOO

Broly sat crossed legged in the center of the round training room. It was pitch black but he could still see his opponents. There were six of them. He felt no pulse of life from them. So they were droids. A bored scoff passed his lips. All this money and his father couldn't afford live opponents? The quiet whirring of their circuits told the Saiyan they were approaching. They split into a semi circle in front of him. Broly had no idea what they were armed with, but he knew any safeguards had been programmed out. And any blasters were at full power, set to kill.

Not that any of that mattered.

The eight year old stood raised his hand over his single bladed lightsaber. A flick of the Force brought it to his fingertips instantly. The blade ignited and the crimson light brought the six droids to his view. They were Duelist Elite droids. Their humanoid shape, durasteel armor, and reflexes faster than human perception, made them perfect practice dummies. But against Broly, they might as well be made out of paper.

Two armed with vibroblades stood on his left. The one in center had been armed with an electrified whip. Even in the dark, Broly could see the electric currents spark along the metal. The last of the semicircle had no weapon, but Broly knew he'd find out sooner or later. The three that stayed back were armed with blasters

A grin formed around his mouth. There were at least ten ways he could finish this session in less than an instant. But that wouldn't be any fun. For the past month he had done nothing but run his father's errands. Only having time to practice his ki blasts and flying. He was going to savor this session. He raised his lightsaber and dropped into a stance.

"Come on," the young Saiyan said. "Make my day."

The unarmed droid attacked first. It raised its arms and fired to projectiles that landed before his feet. Before he could laugh at the malfunction, a bright light flashed from the projectiles. The Saiyan let out a cry of pain at the sudden light. Flash bombs.

His left hand flew up to his eyes while he took a step back. He raised his lightsaber, but a loud crack reached his ears. Suddenly a powerful jolt ran down his, causing another cry of pain. His arm instantly numbed, making him lose his grip on his weapon.

Broly growled and took another step back. He was blinded and unarmed. These droids could probably give him a challenge after all. It was about time father upgraded.

The two vibroblade droids rushed in. Broly licked his lips and chuckled. Bad move. He thrust out his palm, sending the one on the left flying back and slamming into the far wall. The second one came in with a fast overhead strike. Broly jumped back, but the droid proved just seconds faster as it managed a deep gash down his stomach.

Broly winced but used the pain to fuel his boiling anger. The droid rushed in again. A loud pop from behind it told Broly the unarmed droid fired another round of flash bombs. The droid somehow figured out his vision was slowly returning.

The Saiyan thrust out his hand again, pushing back the new bombs, but the droid still rushed in. The Sith with his recovering vision dodged the droid's thrust and socked it with a haymaker to its metallic face. The droid stumbled back, damaged but still operational. Broly charged with a yell, ready to finish off the machine when blaster bolts filled the room.

Broly quickly halted his charge and managed to roll to the sides filling the wall with holes. The rapid fire followed him while the viroblade droid closed in. He could only avoid both the blasters and the blade for so long. He needed his lightsaber.

He stopped suddenly, allowing the blaster droids to fire at him directly. When the bolts were centimeters away, Broly took to the air. He easily evaded the blaster bolts and swooped down to his weapon. But just as he was about to reach it, the whip wrapped around his foot and set a powerful shockwave through his body.

The eight-year old cried out as the electricity shot through is body, making him spasm in mid-air. The droid pulled back the whip and the boy crashed to the cold metal floor. Darkness crept around his vision, but Broly fought it off. He gritted his teeth and ordered his body to its feet. But his legs refused to support him. The boy fell to his knees, his body numb and unresponsive.

"Weakling!" a voice shouted from an intercom. "You should just allow the droids the pleasure of killing you right now! You're as weak as Kakarot!"  
_Kakarot! _

Broly's eyes snapped open. He instantly forgot about whatever injuries that plagued him and leapt to his feet.

_Kakarot! _

That name shattered what control Broly had and made his anger explode through his body. The pain of being shocked and slashed dulled down to nothing. His fatigue vanished while both his ki and connection the Force swelled. The boy's nails dug through his skin. His breathing became so fast and shallow it was as if he had trouble breathing. A savage growl escaped his lips.

"KAKAROT!"

With a savage yell, his ki consumed him. His ebony hair shot straight up and became gold, his eyes flashed to bluish green and his muscle mass swelled. The sudden transformation forced the droids back. But they were soon on the attack again.

Blaster bolts fired his way while the whip slithered through the air. A flick of the Force brought Broly's lightsaber to his hand and within moments the Saiyan deflected every bolt. The whip came his way but a single slash turned it to scrap metal. The vibroblade droid came his way and the Super Saiyan met its charge.

Their blades clashed and Broly instantly overpowered the machine. The droid attempted a quick slash, but Broly easily parried the attack and cleaved off the droid's sword arm. Sparks and wiring flew out of the machine and it tried to pull back. But Broly brought down his blade and reduced the droid to two pieces of scrap.

The flash bomb droid fired its namesake. But in the time it took to fire, Broly was already upon the machine. A horizontal slash ended its artificial life.

Blaster bolts came flying. Broly rocketed towards the droids, deflecting the bolts as he went. A green orb formed around his left hand and with a laugh of psychotic glee, hurled it at the droids. Green light briefly illuminated the pitch black room. When it cleared only bit pieces and scrap remained of the droids.

The whip-less droid, felt the closest thing to fear a machine could get. It attempted to pull back, but Broly blasted towards it. His left fist slammed through its durasteel chest, making it jolt and spasm with malfunction. The Super Saiyan hurled the machine in air and flew up after it. Countless slashes filled the dark room as Broly took his revenge on the droid.

When the boy landed, droid parts rained down behind him. Like the blaster droids, no useful part remained.

"Is that all you have for me father!" the Super Saiyan yelled at the unseen intercom.

"You have nothing to be proud of boy," the voice replied. "Not only did it take you six minutes to defeat these droids, but you needed your Super Saiyan powers to do so. If anything this proves you only need more training."

Broly snarled. How dare that man undermine him! His golden aura flared up. A blast formed in his left hand. He'd show the old man who needed more training!

"Behave, Broly," the intercom said calmly. At the moment electricity ripped through the room. It quickly rendered Broly back to his base form and unconscious. The boy hit the ground with a hard thud.

Paragus sighed from his control room. That had been a close one.

"My lord…" Krang began from behind the controls. "Was that…necessary?"

"You never know with Broly," the lord said, rubbing his temples. "That blast could have obliterated us."

"Yes but sir.." the purple octopus eyes shifted from father to son. "To electrify your only son….and with such a high voltage…"

"It's the only thing I've seen do any real damage to him," Paragus said with a shrug.

"But sir…." Krang tried again. "He's only a boy."

"A boy that can destroy this entire castle and who know what else with a wave of his hand!" he snapped. "Never forget that."

"Yes sir…" A red beep on the consul caught the alien's attention. Krang's many arms moved across the keyboard to intercept the message. "Lord Paragus, it is a message from Lord Sidious."

"I'll take it in the briefing room. Send a medical droid down to Broly."

"Yes sir."

Darth Sidious, Paragus mused. The relationship between himself and the so-called "Dark Lord of the Sith" was a dubious one. Paragus swore, after King Vegeta ordered his son's execution, that he would never again bow to another man or call another man his lord. He had hoped with planet Vegeta's destruction, he would be able to usher in a new wave of Saiyan dominance, using Broly's power as his sword. It would be an age where the entire galaxy was under the control of the Saiyans and he would be thing ruler of that galaxy.

But when Broly brought them to some strange new galaxy with a hooded man waiting for them, Paragus had to put that plan on hold. And before he knew it, he was bowing to yet another lord. This Sidious was even more cowardly than King Vegeta. Other than that first meeting, he absolutely refused to meet with him in person. Any messages were either from a hologram or from some third party that only received messages from him through contacts.

To make matters worse, he had all but kidnapped his son. On Korriban the self-declared Sith, took his son for training in this business called the Force. Whatever that was. He had refused to be parted from son after narrowly escaping death and threatened to blow the bastard away. Sidious told him that he sensed incredible power from the boy, but knew he would be able to control it. That it would drive him to insanity. The Sith said that under his wing, Broly could learn to control his power and be all the more unstoppable.

Back then, Paragus knew there was something powerful about Broly. To be born with a power level of ten thousand had to mean something. But he also feared, as Sidious had predicted, that the power would be too much. If not controlled somehow Broly would become a threat to himself and him. So, against his better judgment, he agreed. But only if his son was brought back to him so he could learn to control his ki, something he knew Sidious knew nothing about. The Sith agreed to return in seven years time and disappeared into the sands of the desert planet.

Sidious somehow provided him with a castle on some distant Outer-Rim planet to serve as his base. He had said it was far from any Republic laws or regulations, so Paragus could rule as he saw fit, while he waited for Broly's return. Seven years later the Sith kept his promise. Broly's power seemed under control and his ki lessons began. It all seemed to work out.

Until Broly revealed his Super Saiyan ability.

In that form, whatever control Broly had vanished. He lashed out at anything and everything, even him, his own father. A single punch from the boy rendered him blind in his left eye. In his rampage Broly destroyed some computer and electricity knocked him unconscious and back to his base state. After that disaster, Paragus somehow managed to contact Sidious. He demanded to know what went wrong. But had said nothing went wrong.

"He is as he should be in that form," the Sith had said with a wicked grin. "He will train with you for four years, and then return him to me for the second half of his training."

It was then Paragus realized what a mistake he had made. Sidious didn't want to teach to control his power. He wanted that power unleashed. The fool didn't know what he was asking. He should have taken Broly and ran, but without any idea where they were, and with Broly unstable as he was, travel was just too dangerous. He was stuck. Even now, his mind worked for some way out of this situation.

His musing halted when he reached the briefing room. The doors whooshed open and the pale blue hologram of Darth Sidious appeared before him.

"My lord, Sidious," he greeted with a bow, despite his inner revulsion.

"The training goes well I take it?"

"Yes my lord." He replied, ignoring the bitter taste the phrase left in his mouth.

"Good. I have a task for you Paragus."

"For me my lord?"

"Yes. Tell me all you know about this Lord Freiza."

Paragus head snapped up at the familiar name. How Sidious knew of Freiza gave way to a much more important question. "Why do you wish to know of Freiza?"

Sidious let out his wicked smile.

"I wish to make contact with him."

AN: Yep you read right, Sidious wants contact with Frieza. This galaxy is officially screwed. Or is it? Anyways, Broly focused chapter. And yes even with Sith training or at least part of it he's still batshit insane and hates Kakarot. I hope I got Sidious's character down pat. I really wasn't sure how he would react if he experienced Broly's power so I just took a guess. Not sure if Paragus training Broly as well violates the whole Rule of Two thing, but then again Paragus isn't a Sith so I guess it doesn't matter. Anyone familar with the Jedi apprentice books will know who Bruck is, and who "Oafy-Wan" is too. (Although I hope that one is pretty obvious). And yeah I gave Broly a weakness to electricity. Can't have him too powerful otherwise no one would stand a chance against him. Anyways enough of my ramblings. See you all next chapter!


	4. Art of the Saber

Padawan Kakarot

Chapter 4: Art of the Saber

"I wish to make contact with him."

Paragus's blood ran cold for the longest of seconds. His eyes stayed fixed on the smooth cortosis alloy floor. Despite the draft in the metal room, the Saiyan already felt the first beads of sweat forming on his brow. Frieza here? Dealing with Sidious no less! He couldn't let that happen. Serving Sidious was already a gamble; to have Frieza in this part of the galaxy would be disastrous. Between Zarbon, Dadoria, the Ginyu Force, and his own power, Frieza could have this galaxy under his thumb in a matter of months. Sidious had no idea who his was going to deal with. That monster could wipe this human off the face of the galaxy with a wave of his finger, Force or no.

With Broly at his side, Paragus had his own plans for galactic dominance, and no one, not Frieza or Sidious, was going to stop that dream! The Saiyan took a breath to collect himself. He had to do everything he could to stall this plan. Broly was powerful, but had no control. If he could get the Sith to hold off on this plan until Broly had full control of his abilities, then Frieza would be a mere gnat before his son.

"My lord Sidious," he began, hoping the fear wasn't present in his voice. "I have no idea which part of the galaxy Freiza currently resides. He holds over 79 planets in his grip, many of them countless light-years and parsecs away. How will I send out any kind of message?"

The Sith merely scoffed. "Light-years, parsecs. Such terms are meaningless to a Sith with full command of the Force. I will locate this Frieza, and you will compose a message to him."

Paragus grunted. He needed a new tactic. "Even if you did locate him, the equipment needed to send a suitable message is out of my reach. You would need lightspeed buoys, satellites, holo-image projectors, and countless other components. My resources, even through your contacts, have its limits."

"Then extend those limits," Sidious growled, losing patience. "You will bring this Freiza to me. Use any means necessary."

With that the blue image faded out, leaving a frustrated Saiyan.

"Damn that human," Paragus growled. It would take weeks, even months to find the suitable components to make a communication relay. And even then, if that Sith didn't find Frieza's exact coordinates the message would be worthless.

"Sidious will gain nothing allying himself with Frieza," he thought aloud. The Saiyans learned that lesson the hard way. After countless years of service and loyalty that monster rewarded them with the utter destruction of their planet and culture. That was all anyone received with Frieza as an ally.

At that thought, Paragus's eyes lit up with inspiration. That was the answer to all his problems. A way to get rid of both monsters once and for all, and assure his place as ruler of the galaxy!

With a new vigor, Paragus left the room and began searching for the proper components.

Those two would soon learn of the power of the Saiyan race.

OOOOO

Kakarot felt his tail twitch in irritation. He and his clan sat in one of the larger mediation chambers of the temple. The large circular room was completely bare save for a one rectangular window that served as the sole source of light for the chamber. The younglings sat with their arms and legs crossed, and their eyes squeezed closed. Before each of them was a small stone block. The task was simple. Use the Force to move the block across the room.

At least Kakarot thought it'd be simple. The task began almost 30 standard minutes ago, and the monkey boy was the only one who had yet to make progress. Kakarot took a deep breath for what had to be the 50'th time and tried to find his center.

"Find your place of inner peace," he always heard Master Madre say. But Kakarot never understood what that meant. He always supposed it meant think of when he was happiest. So Kakarot zeroed in on the image of the biggest feast he could think of. But the block refused to budge. The monkey gritted his teeth and pushed harder.

'Come on you stupid rock!' he thought. 'Move darn it!'

Kakarot felt every muscle on his small body tense up as he mentally screamed at the stubborn stone. After two minutes, the boy felt his head would explode if he continued any longer. His heart pounded as if he had just finished running around the entire temple eight times. Kakarot let out a groan as he rubbed his head. A major headache was already forming.

Blocks from the other kids floated about the room, each at its own height and pace. Pik's block floated low to the ground and inched across the room as if trying to avoid the others. Tourin moved his block high and fast. It was all but flying towards the rounded ceiling until the boy lost control and it came crashing down.

"Control, Tourin," their instructor, Plo Koon reminded him. "You must learn control."

Blocks from the other younglings bumped against each other, dropped suddenly when the younglings lost their focus, or went flying across the room, forcing Plo Koon to practice his dodging skills.

Kakarot glanced over at Aysha, whose block moved through the air with ease. The faces of the younglings were all scrunched together, their bodies' tense with sweat rolling down their brows. The Togruta girl however was completely calm. Her block moved and weaved through the cluster of stones and found its way to Master Koon's waiting hand.

"Excellent, Aysha," the Dorin praised. "An excellent example of control and precision."

A satisfied smile crossed the girl's lips.

Kakarot's tail twitched again. Why could she do it so easily? What was he doing wrong?

"Hey, Aysha," he whispered. "How did you do that? What did you do?"

"I found my place of inner peace," she replied.

"How'd you find it? Where is it?"

"I can't tell you. It's something you have to find yourself."

"That doesn't make sense…"

"Kakarot, focus," Plo Koon said sternly.

"Yes master."

Kakarot squeezed his eyes shut and tried again. After several deep breaths the image of the block formed behind his eyelids. The image was hazy at best, but Kakarot pushed harder to try to clear the image. He gritted his teeth and mentally called at the stone one more time. But the stone refused to move.

"Only two minutes left younglings," Plo Koon said.

The warning broke what little concentration Kakarot had. The boy shook his head and tried a new way.

'Inner peace,' he thought. 'Inner peace.' He still had no idea what it meant, but if it allowed Aysha to move the stone so easily, it had to be worth something. As he had done before, Kakarot zeroed in on the image of a huge feast in front of him. Oven roasted chicken, garlic mashed potatoes, buckets of rice, a table full of noodles, countless dishes of steak! In a matter of seconds, Kakarot's mouth was saturated with his drool and his stomach sent out a pulse of hunger.

"Times up younglings," Plo Koon announced. The blocks dropped in a simultaneous _thump._ The younglings unfolded themselves and opened their eyes to see the progress of their stones.

Kakarot opened his eyes and saw the block hadn't moved at all. All he had accomplished in this session was making himself hungry.

"Excellent work younglings," the Dorin said, walking about the room, examining the how far the blocks went. He looked at Aysha and Pik who both managed to get their blocks across the room. "Some of you are making great progress. Some of you…" he looked at Kakarot. "Still have much to learn it seems. For example, thinking of a great feast is not a proper means of achieving inner peace."

A chuckle ran through the chamber, Kakarot's eyes were fixed on the block. Even now it still refused to move.

OOOOO

"Not even a centimeter Kakarot?" Tourin laughed as the four made their way to their next lesson.

"I got hungry," Kakarot said, rubbing his now growling stomach.

"We just ate breakfast," Aysha said in disbelief. "How could you possibly be hungry again?"

"It's Kakarot," Pik groaned. "What do you expect? Anyways, shouldn't you be more worried Kakarot? You've never been able to move anything since we started that lesson. At this rate you'll never be a Jedi Knight."

Kakarot just laughed. "Don't worry so much, I'll figure it out. I just need to find out what this inner peace stuff means."

"It's not that hard to figure out," Aysha said. "It just where you feel the most calm."

"So then how come every time I try to think of that I get hungry?"

The Togruta girl slapped her forehead. "Because knowing you, you thought of food."

"And what's wrong with that?"

Aysha sighed again. "Never mind Kakarot."

As the four walked, the sharp sound of lightsabers clashing reached their young ears. Kakarot's ears and tail twitched when the sound went off again. Before the other three could stop him, the monkey boy was running down the corridor to the dueling ring.

The room was a large rectangle, with a stone floor. Several of the blocks were elevated to ankle level, making it easy for combatants to lose their footing. The younglings of this clan sat around the sidelines as they watched the two sparring partners engage.

The two stood blindfolded, as was standard procedure for duels, and took two tentative steps forward. They were both careful to step over the raised blocks. The first combatant was a boy Kakarot didn't recognize. He was about the same as age as Bruck, with short brown hair and blue eyes. His body was rather lanky from the growth spurt he must be experiencing. His limbs seemed to be growing faster than the boy could keep up with, making his movements rather clumsy. It really showed when he lunged forward. He raised his blue saber, ready for a slash, when he stumbled over his left foot, throwing off his attack.

The girl, Darsha Assant easily side-stepped the awkward attack and nicked him on his side with her yellow saber. The boy winced, but managed to regain his footing. He took another breath and rushed forward again. He stepped over the blocks and attacked with a series of fast slashes. Darsha's blade met every attack from the blue saber. At the end of the assault, the sabers locked together with the boy trying to use his natural strength against Darsha. However, the blond girl saw though his strategy. The boy pushed her back until her foot hit against one of the raised blocks. From where he stood, Kakarot saw the brief smile on her face. The boy had fallen into her trap.

Darsha broke saber contact and swept past the boy. He stumbled forward from the sudden loss of the opposing force. His unbalanced feet caused him to trip on the raised block in front of him. The boy fought to keep his footing, but a simple nudge from Darsha's hilt made him lose his battle against gravity.

"Very good, Darsha," the twi'lek instructor Anoon Bondara said. The aged Jedi sat on a raised dais where he had overlooked the mock duel. "It was a wise move using young Kenobi's brute strength against him."

"Thank you master," Darsha said with a bow.

"Remember young Obi-Wan," Anoon said to the recovering boy. "A Jedi's ally is not brute strength. A Jedi's ally is the Force."

"I will try to remember that master," the boy, Obi-Wan said, his face a scarlet red. Either from the excursion or embarrassment, Kakarot wasn't sure.

"That looks fun!" Kakarot exclaimed, catching the attention of everyone in the chamber. "I want to try! Let me try!"

"Kakarot!" Aysha hissed. "We're not supposed to be here."

"Besides, our lightsaber session is later this afternoon anyways," Tourin reminded the excited monkey.

"But this looks more fun!" Kakarot protested. The sparring sessions they had were slow and deliberate. They practiced only the simplest of movements. When they did spar it was never blindfolded. It was always on level ground with pre-arranged attacks and counters. While it was a lot better than the mediation and Force sessions, Kakarot always felt he was ready for more. And this type of sparring was exactly what he needed.

"I am sorry youngling, but these lessons are much too advanced for you," Anoon said. "And your friends are correct; shouldn't you be with your clan heading to your next lesson?"

Kakarot pouted. The next lesson was astronomy, where they studied nearby stars and planets, and their significance to the Jedi Order. For Kakarot it was just as bad as the lessons in the Archives. He had enough of sitting around for today. He wanted to fight.

"Please master. I really want to try."

"I appreciate your enthusiasm, youngling," Anoon said, already motioning for the next pair to get ready. "But your time for these lessons will come soon. A Jedi must learn patience after all. Now please return to your lessons."

Kakarot was about to retort when pain ran up and down his spine like a snake. His body froze for a quick second before he fell over. Tourin and Pik grabbed the stunned boy and began to drag him away.

"Yes we will master," Aysha said bowing. "Thank you for your wisdom."

OOOOO

"What'd you guys pull my tail for?" Kakarot whined during astronomy.

"You were making a fool of yourself," Aysha replied, jotting down notes on her datapad.

"Again," Tourin added.

"Besides half the people in that lesson could probably beat you anyways," Pik whispered, only giving the conversation half his attention. Astronomy was his favorite subject after all. Kakarot never understood why.

"You don't know that," Kakarot said.

"Kakarot," their instructor Depa Billaba called sternly. "Perhaps you can tell me the average distance from Coruscant to Hoth?"

Kakarot drew a blank. He stared at the holo-image of the galactic map but it made no sense to him. He titled his head every which way to find some kind of clue, but all he saw was a bunch of numbers and symbols. He hated numbers.

"50 parsecs?" he said with his trademark grin.

Master Billaba sighed and shook her head, as did Aysha and Pik. Kakarot was hopeless at times.

OOOOO

The class ended with an assignment to map a quarter of the mid-rim worlds. Kakarot hoped he could peak at Pik's holo-image like he usually did. But that was at the back of Kakarot's mind as he and his clan stood in front of several round remotes, dancing in the air. Blast shield helmets were placed over their heads, covering their vision.

"Get ready," Kit Fisto said. The remotes began to speed up, and Kakarot could hear the whirling of gears and other parts beginning to kick in. The monkey boy took a deep breath as did the other younglings. He felt the warm tug of the Force at the back of mind, just barely out of reach.

"Begin."

Lightsabers ignited and small but fast blaster bolts fired. Kakarot's blade moved up, catching the first bolt and swung down to catch other. From behind the blast shield and his eyelids he could see a fuzzy image of the remote dancing in front of him. It dropped down and fired a bolt to his stomach. Kakarot's blue blade swung outwards, deflecting the bolt back to the round device, which automatically dodged.

"Excellent younglings," Kit Fisto said with his trademark smile. "Feel the Force flowing through you."

Kakarot grinned as he deflected another bolt. This was the kind of training he wanted. No numbers, no sitting around. Just use your lightsaber and the Force to beat whatever opponent was in front of you.

Three more bolts came his way, but the monkey boy caught all three with ease. He could feel the warm comforting sensation of the Force flowing through his body. Why couldn't the Force come to him this easily when he needed to move that stupid block?

"Good, good," Kit Fisto said. "Now it's about to get a little faster."

As if on cue, the remote's dance pattern sped up. The familiar figure-eight pattern turned random, with blaster bolts firing in every which direction. Kakarot moved his blade as fast as he could. He caught four, but a fifth stung his shoulder. He shook his head and took a deeper breath, trying to sink deeper into the Force. But the fuzzy image of the remotes didn't clear up. The machine danced around his hazed sixth sense, at times completely disappearing from his view until it attacked.

He heard six bolts fire and his blade moved. From behind his eyelids he saw the small red cylinders in slow motion. His blade moved in a "Z" motion, catching the bolts with a practiced precision. But as he deflected the sixth bolt, a seventh shot his way. The slow-motion the Force granted him faded and the bolt connected with his leg. The sharp pain knocked Kakarot out of any focus he had, and left him open for a series of blaster bolts.

"Are you alright Kakarot?" the Nautolan asked.

"Yes master," he replied, rubbing his sore spots.

"Perhaps you should visit the medical wing," the master said, eying the boy's new burns. "Those look serious."

Kakarot flipped up his helmet to examine the burns. They stung a little bit, but they didn't hurt that much. He could still swing his lightsaber. He moved his legs and made small leaps to test them. Nope, they still worked. What was Master Fisto so worried about?

"I'm fine master," Kakarot insisted, returning to the exercise.

Kit Fisto grimaced. Kakarot was an unusual initiate. He was only a child, yet he could shrug off injuries that placed several younglings in the medical wing for several days. His attention span was all but nonexistent, yet when it came to lightsaber techniques, or a new unarmed technique, his attention was unmatched. The Jedi Master glanced at the other younglings to check their progress. Three were already forced to sit out because of the burns from the remotes.

Aysha deflected one bolt, but overextended her blade, leaving her open for two other blasts. The girl cried out as the bolts hit her, making her take a knee. Kit quickly turned off her remote and told her to report to the medical wing. After ten minutes most younglings either over exerted themselves or the burns forced them to stop. Soon only Kakarot and Tourin remained. The monkey boy was all but covered in small but noticeable burns while Tourin's tunic was all but stuck to him from the boy's sweat.

"Alright you two, that's enough," the master said, shutting off the remotes.

"Kakarot," Tourin said as he flipped up his helmet. "Don't those hurt?"

"Huh?" the boy glanced down at his various burns as if he had just noticed them. "Nah. In fact it just tickles a little bit."

"You're weird," Tourin laughed as they met their friends.

"I know."

Kit Fisto watched the tailed boy as he talked with his three friends.

"Very unusual indeed."

OOOOO

Kakarot walked out of the medical wing with bacta lotion all over his burns. Master Geri like Tourin and Master Fisto kept asking him the burns hurt. Even when he said no, she insisted that he stay in the bed until dinner. He didn't understand why everyone made a big deal out of them. He was on his way to the dining area when he heard the familiar hum of a lightsaber. The boy soon found himself back in the sparring chamber. This time though, it was empty save for the lone boy practicing his strikes and stances. It took a few steps closer for Kakarot to realize it was the Obi-something kid from earlier.

Obi-Wan lunged at his imaginary opponent and began the form with a simple downwards strike. From there he pivoted on his right foot into side slash and an upwards slash, decapitating another pretend foe. He whirled around again ready to continue his private session when his foot hit against one of the raised blocks. It didn't take long for the older boy to have a repeat of his fall against Darsha. Cursing his growing legs, the initiate was about to get back up when he heard a snickering laughter from behind him. Hoping to the Force it wasn't Bruck he turned around and saw a short, stubby kid, with wild hair that Obi-Wan had never seen on a humanoid. The kid's wide grin and furry tail waving behind him, gave him a monkey-like appearance. Seeing his grin suddenly made Obi-Wan realize what the boy was laughing at, and his face turned scarlet.

"What are you laughing at?" he muttered, trying his best to hide his embarrassment.

"You, silly!" the monkey kid said in between giggles.

Obi-Wan gritted his teeth and called on every lesson he could think of to keep his calm. He grabbed his lightsaber and quickly got back on his awkward feet. "I'm glad I could be a source of your amusement. Now please let me get back to my training."

"No I wanna try," he said already running into the duel ring.

Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow. The monkey boy barely reached his kneecaps. His short stubby limbs would make his range of motion extremely limited. Not to mention the fact that Obi-Wan had four more years of lightsaber training than the eager kid in front of him. It wouldn't end well for either of them. The kid would get burns all over his body, or worse. And he would get chastised for having an unauthorized duel with a kid less than half his size. No Jedi Knight would take him on as their padawan after that. It just wasn't worth it.

"You're too young," the taller boy said simply as he turned his back. "You should get back with your clan."

"No fair! I wanna spar!"

"Go back kid. We'd both get in trouble."

He took only four steps when the Force showed him the image of a blue blade coming towards his head. But that was impossible. There was no one else in here. It was only when Obi-Wan felt the intense heat of a lightsaber inches behind his neck did he duck. The blade shaved off a few strands but nothing serious. The young trainee jumped back and ignited his blade, ready for any danger. But in front of him was the same kid with his lightsaber ignited as well.

"Wow, you're fast!" the monkey boy said with a wide grin.

Obi-Wan felt his jaw loosen. If the lightsabers they were using hadn't been low energy emission, and if the Force hadn't given him that vision, he would have been dead. But according to master Yoda, for imitates such visions only occurred in times of great danger. It was impossible that the eight-year-old in front of him posed such a threat. It just had to be.

The kid looked at Obi-Wan up and down with his ebony eyes as if he were looking or waiting for something.

"Aren't you going to attack me now?" he asked simply.

Temptation pushed Obi-Wan's foot forward, but curiosity made him push it back and sink into a defensive stance. He had to know why his senses were telling him that the child in front him was dangerous.

Obi-Wan motioned the boy forward his saber. "You come to me."

"Okay!" And he was off. His small legs were all but blurs as he cleared the distance between them in less than two seconds. Obi-Wan readied his saber but felt it was unnecessary. In his rush to attack, the big haired kid failed to notice the raised block he was speeding towards. He would no doubt trip; leave himself open, and get cut by Obi-Wan saber, ending this in a matter of seconds. And even if he avoided the block, his reach was too short. The young Jedi rolled his eyes, he wasn't sure why he even doing this in the first place.

The kid was just centimeters away from the block. Obi-Wan closed his eyes and readied himself the sound of the youngling's fall. But it never came. Instead a loud battle cry reached his ears along with a vision of a saber inches from his head again.

"Heads up!"

Obi-Wan opened his eyes in time to see the kid launch himself off the block and speed towards him like a missile. The older boy had just enough time to raise his saber into a proper defense before the kid slammed into him.

It felt as though a speeder just crashed into him. Obi-Wan dug his foot into the ground trying to stay up but it was like trying to resist a tidal wave. The power quickly overwhelmed the initiate, throwing him across the chamber onto this back.

Obi-Wan managed to flip back to his feet when he saw the kid coming in again. As before he used the raised block as his launching pad and was soon rocketing towards the older boy. Obi-Wan tensed. There was no way he could meet this kid head-on. But how else could he win?

"Remember young Obi-Wan," he remembered master Bondara saying. "A Jedi's ally is not brute strength. A Jedi's ally is the Force."

With those words as his guide, Obi-Wan closed his eyes and allowed the Force to flow through him.

Everything in the room seemed to slow down. The kid rocketing through the air now moved by centimeters. His steady heartbeat rang in his ears, drowning out all other sounds. He threw out his hand to his right. A wave of the Force flowed out of his hand like a faucet and wrapped itself around a raised block. With a quick tug the block floated in the air, ready for whatever orders Obi-Wan had.

The taller boy turned back to the monkey child trapped in slow-motion. He thrust his hand forward and the stone followed, hurling itself towards the kid. The moment the stone left his command, everything snapped back to as it was.

The gray square flew towards the flying monkey who seemed taken aback. Obi-Wan wasn't sure how fast the kid was going in the air, but it seemed too fast for him to react. The two collided in the air, shattering the block and sending the kid flying backwards, slamming his head against the far wall.

"Oh, no," Obi-Wan breathed. He rushed towards his unconscious opponent and felt a surge of dread when he saw that the youngling wasn't moving.

"Hey, hey!" he said as he shook the kid. "Come on get up. Please get up!" Obi-Wan didn't know what came over him. All of a sudden he just felt compelled to win their match at any cost. Even hurled a block at younger inexperienced initiate. What kind of Jedi succumbed to such a measure? And now because he failed to control himself like a proper Jedi, a youngling was dead because of him! They would throw him out of the order for sure. Or worse prison! Obi-Wan's hands flew to his hair as if trying to hold in his thoughts as he paced in front of the fallen initiate. His heart rate flew up to levels unhealthy for a growing boy.

"Ow..." Obi-Wan heard behind him.

He whirled around saw the youngling coming to."Are you okay?"

The eight-year-old eyes fluttered open as if he was waking up from a nap. His ebony eyes darted left and right as if taking stock of his surroundings. The next thing Obi-Wan knew the boy jumped to his feet and rubbed his head like he just bumped it.

"Ow...that kinda hurt you know," he said only slightly annoyed. "But it was still a great move! How'd you do that?"

Obi-Wan just stood staring at the boy. He wasn't sure how to respond. He wasn't even sure what he was seeing currently. A brick, with enough density for a lightsaber to have trouble cutting through it, had just slammed headfirst into him and he was walking around like it was nothing. He had to of had a concussion.

"Maybe you should go to the medical wing," the older boy suggested.

The kid just stuck out his tongue. "I'm not going back there. They might give me needles, I hate needles! Besides, I want to continue our match."

"You cannot be serious..."

He titled his head in confusion. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"You don't feel sleepy or woozy or anything?"

"I'm hungry, does that count as something?"

'What's this kid made of?' Obi-Wan thought.

The kid activated his lightsaber and Obi-Wan was very tempted to keep going. The young boy quickly shook those thoughts away. He had to play it safe. That's what any Jedi would do. But the kid seemed determined to keep going. There was only one way out of this situation.

"You want to go to the medical wing," Obi-Wan suggested, with Force in his voice. The Mind Trick was one of the last lessons he had been taught and until now hadn't had much reason to practice it.

"I want to go to the medical wing," the kid repeated, deactivating his lightsaber.

"I'll go with you."

The boy nodded and they soon fell into step as they exited the dueling chamber.

"By the way, what's your name?" Obi-Wan asked. "I think I want to spar again with you."

Whatever effect the Force had on the kid vanished instantly.

"You would?" he exclaimed as if promised a new toy. "Awesome! I'm Kakarot! I can't wait to fight you again Obi...Obi..."

"Obi-Wan," he finished for him. "Obi-Wan Kenobi."

"When do you think we can spar again Obi-Wan?"

"Well...I guess tomorrow. But you have to go to the medical wing now okay? If you don't we can't spar again."

"Alright I will. See you tomorrow then!" With that Kakarot sped down the corridor with a new vigor.

Obi-Wan stared at Kakarot's vanishing form and could only think of one thing to say:

"What planet is he from?"

AN: Yep it took quite a while for a new chapter. But between school and trying figure out what exactly should happen this chapter it all really stalled. I was going to save Kakarot meeting Obi-Wan until later, but figured without that meeting the story seemed lacking. Part of the fun for me is just imagining Goku hanging out with familiar Star Wars characters and how they would see him. I touched on that a little bit with this one, and trust me there will be more to come. Anyways thanks for reading and I'll see you all next chapter.


	5. Rampage

Padawan Kakarot

Chapter 5: Rampage

Broly shifted in his bed. Sleep was eluding him. The child Sith let out a growl as he mentally screamed for sleep to come. But his cry remained unanswered. With another growl the Saiyan threw off his sheets and slammed his into his wall in frustration. It had been a week since he last slept. He glanced at the clock on the far wall. It was eight standard hours before sunrise. Another growl escaped his lips. Not even the mynoks would be awake at this hour. The thought of returning to bed crossed his mind, only for it to slip away in that very instant, when he heard _him _again.

The cry of a baby was said to be a blessing. From a scientific view it meant the child was breathing. The louder the infant cried, the healthier it was. From a mythical view it meant life. However one viewed it, someone somewhere decided that a baby's cry was a good thing.

Broly wanted to kill that someone.

He heard a baby's wail almost his entire life and he knew for a fact it was no blessing. Day in and day out, night after night, he heard that blasted child. His high pitched wails for some insatiable need echoed through his mind. Broly gritted his teeth and squeezed his eyes shut, trying to drive the white noise away. Instead he was back in his crib on Planet Vegeta, lying awake as he was now. The glass lid of his crib gave him a full view of dark nursery. The barren ceiling stared back at him as it did with the other Saiyan children. The pristine white stone served as the closest thing to a parent to the Saiyan infants. The doctors checked in only to cater to their basic needs, their actual parents never showed their faces unless their power level was high enough to earn their attention. The ceiling however always stared back at them. Never moved, never poked or prodded them with needles. It was a peaceful sight.

Until that bastard began his wailing.

Whether it was from a strong pair of lungs or sheer force of will, the lower class infant's cries penetrated the sound muffling glass and echoed through the room. His raspy high pitched voice seemed to be everywhere at once. The other infants were fortunate that enough distance was between them and the noisy child that his wails only came as muffled cries. But for him, his wails slammed into his ears like a club. He shifted in his confiding crib trying to ignore the bastard, but as the minutes passed into hours, his cries never ceased. Broly looked up his pristine guardian, hoping against hope that somehow it would make the cries stop. But it did nothing. Frustration built in his new born chest resulting in tears and wails of his own begging for anything to make the adjacent wails stop.

"Jeez," a doctor said finally attending to the noise. "Quite set of lungs on that one."

"What's his name, Kakarot was it?" his colleague said with a chuckle. "Pretty weak power level though. It only came up to five I heard."

The doctor laughed at the reading, but finally noticed Broly's wails. "Sure is giving Paragus's son a hard time though."

The colleague scoffed as they made their way out. "He has a power level of ten thousand, he'll be fine."

Broly could only watch as the doctors left without so much as glancing at them. He cried louder hoping to grab their attention but to no avail. He could only see their retreating backs. And the noise continued without fail. Why? Why was no one helping? It was a question that would remain unanswered as Broly was left alone, with only Kakarot's cries as his companion.

"KAKAROT!" His eyes snapped open. He was back in his room but all the Sith could see was red. Energy flared up around him as his ebony hair flashed into gold. His aqua-blue eyes zeroed in on the wall before him. A mixture of ki and the Force boiled in his body, as if unsure which ability to use. His nails dug into his skin as his ki overpowered the Force. His green ki consumed his hands, filling the darkness with his green light. That wall was coming down.

"DIE KAKAROT!" The Saiyan thrust his arms forward, unleashing every ounce of his rage and hate on the object. The green energy blasted through the wall as if it were paper and continued down the hall like a boulder. The energy tore through the last of the walls before continuing out of the castle and into the darkened sky.

Broly stared at the destruction before him. His breath heaved as his ki died down. After several breaths, all was still. He could hear the guards rushing to his floor to examine his renovations. The Sith took another breath before sitting back on his bed. He closed his eyes feeling his body finally give way to sleep. But before he could fully succumb, the bastard's wails poured through again.

His eyes snapped open again with a savage roar. It wasn't enough. He could still hear it. He could still hear Kakarot. His emerald ki flared. The floor of the palace shook with the vigor of a country-wide earthquake. Five guards rushed into his room to investigate the commotion. Broly could only smile as he approached them.

Whatever it took, he would drown out that blasted noise.

Seconds later, the cries of pain of the guards filled the air.

Paragus sat at his personal terminal in his bedroom. The blue light of the screen filled room as he stared at the countless names and figures on the holo-net. He ran his hands through his hair in frustration. Almost a week of sitting in front of this blasted screen and nothing. That bastard Sidious would have his head. How, the Saiyan had no idea but he couldn't afford to underestimate the so-called Sith. Paragus leaned back against his chair and rubbed his temples. There was an irony in his current situation somewhere. Here he was, one of the two survivors of the destruction of planet Vegeta, trying to make contact with its executioner.

"It is impossible," Krang had told him after his meeting with Sidious.

"What do you mean?" Paragus had growled.

"I mean it is impossible to contact Lord Frieza."

"Why is that!" the Saiyan had barked.

The purple octopus just sighed. "He's in a completely different galaxy Paragus. Communication maybe instantaneous in this galaxy, but that's only because there are countless satellites and stations to pick up the signals. Sending a message to entirely different galaxy is a shot in the dark!"

"Broly and I arrived in this galaxy without much trouble. Why can't a simple message go back the same way we got here?"

Krang ran his tentacles over the terminal pulling up a custom image of planet Vegeta. Then he created the image of Frieza's Death Ball technique.

"The explosion of planet Vegeta sent you and Broly flying," he had explained. "A combination of intense heat, the shockwave, sudden loss of gravity and countless other factors must have created some kind of temporary bridge between the two galaxies."

The Saiyan had just groaned. "What is your point?"

"My point is without those factors any message sent from here will just end up floating endlessly in space, possibly for years."

"There has to be a way!"

That one phrase had led Paragus to his current late-night holo-net search. Names of scientists, engineers, doctors, and astronomers floated before his eyes. If Krang was right he needed to set off some kind of planet-wide explosion to recreate the bridge between galaxies, launch a satellite that would receive the message, and then actually send the message. Or something to that affect, the Saiyan hadn't exactly figured out the details.

Paragus sighed and rubbed his eyes, fatigue beginning to set in. He certainly wasn't going to figure out a plan this night. The tired Saiyan switched off the terminal and headed for bed when a roar caught his ears. Probably just the wildlife, he figured. But when the entire palace shook and several alarms rang on his terminal, he was forced to reconsider.

"Master Paragus! Master Paragus!" the guard captain yelled from the intercom. "Master Paragus! It's Broly!"

That caught his attention.

"What's going on down there captain?" Paragus barked. But the various explosions and cries of pain and fear told him all he needed to know.

"I don't know sir!" the captain answered, the fear apparent in his voice. "Broly just started killing my men! He's destroying everything in sight!"

Damn it Broly, he growled mentally. "Fall back! Fall back! I'll be there in a few moments. Do not engage him, that's an order!"

"Yes sir!"

As the intercom switched off, Paragus had to resist the urge to smash the machine. After a few deep breaths the urge died down. The Saiyan quickly grabbed a sliver glove sitting on his nightstand and rushed to the fifth floor.

Emerald ki sprayed across the corridor, vaporizing six red clad guards in seconds. The remaining guards returned fire at the eight year old, only to have the child fly though the blaster bolts as if they were needles. His shoulder collided with the front guard, sending him flying to far wall fifteen feet away. A savage grin cracked across Broly's face as he felt their fear. He could feel his power surge with each kill and with each kill Kakarot's cries became fainter. He needed more. Four ki blasts flew out of his hands, two killed the guards instantly while the remaining two curved upwards, tearing through the ceiling and escaping into the atmosphere.

"Broly!" his father's voice rang across the hall.

Broly's aqua-blue eyes met with his father's ebony. Without another thought the eight year old Saiyan barreled towards his father. His fist cocked back, green ki circling around his fist, but unlike the others his father showed no fear. Paragus merely held up his strange sliver glove. His father dodged his punch with ease and grabbed his wrist.

"Be still son!" With that electricity sprang from the glove and ran up and down Broly's body. In a matter of seconds his flaring ki died down to nothing while his hair and eyes returned to their normal ebony color. Darkness overtook the Saiyan child and before long he was a heap on the floor.

After several seconds of stillness, Paragus let out the breath he had been holding. That was too close. He stared at the bodies (or rather what was left of the charred pieces of meat), the massive holes in the walls and ceiling, and the looks of fear in men's eyes. All this destruction from a single child. This could not happen again.

"Captain," he called over his comm. Device. "Get me a damage report and a headcount ."

"Yes sir," the captain said, his voice still shaking.

Paragus stared at the unconscious form of his son. "And wake Krang, I need him to make a power restrainer."

"Yes sir."

With a sigh, Paragus collapsed to floor as he watched the sun shine through the holes in the ceiling. It was going to be a long morning.

OOOOO

Captain Dion Clarsk rubbed his temples. He sat on the bridge of his transport ship the _Hanoi_ listening as the ensigns mouthed off various status reports while his first officer gave the latest news from the Republic. The tired captain ran his hand through his loose red hair. The only status he was interested in was their ETA to the prisoner planet Elimina. The typical trip from Coruscant to Elimina was about a week, four days with a high class Republic ship. But the _Hanoi_ was over eight years old. Eight years of countless light speed jumps, encounters with space pirates, asteroid belts and breakdowns.

Needless to say she had seen better days. Fortunately, a prisoner transport ship didn't need much to function. Other than basic propulsion needs, back-up and portable power sources, and some moderate shielding, she could run on a skeleton crew with the OOM security battle droid doing the grunt work of checking on the prisoners. This was probably why the Republic kept her in service; she was one of the cheapest ships in the fleet. Trips like this were routine for the captain.

"Still," the middle aged human muttered aloud. "Doesn't mean I have to like it."

"What was that captain?" his Twi'lek first officer asked.

Dion sighed. "Nothing, I was just thinking about our third class bucket of bolts here."

His first officer's lekku twitched. "The _Hanoi _is a fine ship sir. I can think of no better servant of the Galactic Republic, other than the Jedi of course."

Dion chuckled at his officer's sincerity. "You have more respect for this ship than I do, Kekhan."

"But of course sir," Kekhan answered. "If it weren't for this ship, killers like that Mandalorian scum below deck and those Weequay, would be free to roam the core worlds."

The captain rolled his eyes. "You thank Elimina for that, not this ship."

Kekhan shrugged. "Either way sir, we still. You would enjoy your position if you would just appreciate what we do, no matter how small it is."

"What for?" Dion laughed. "I have you for that."

The two officers shared a good laugh before the port side alarms rang. Dion's eyes hardened as he twirled in his chair, facing the port side ensigns. Kekhan was over the ensigns' shoulders in seconds reading off the reports.

"Report!" the captain ordered.

"Incoming projectiles sir!" the ensign said. "Coming in fast!"

"It's about twenty seconds away from impact!" Kekhan said.

"What? How far away is it?"

"300 kilometers sir," the ensign replied, already working to raise the shields.

"Impossible!" Dion said. "What the hell can move so fast?"

"We'll know in another fifteen seconds," Kekhan replied. "Orders captain?"

"Prepare for evasive maneuvers!"

"Impossible sir," the stern ensign said. "By the time we would complete the maneuver we'd be hit by this thing at least six times."

"Ten seconds from impact!"

Dion growled. Was it pirates? Every now and then pirates would raid their ship hoping to spring their friends. Most were in vain as their shields and armor was too strong for the simple starfighters penetrate. Many attacks ended with just some mild carbon scoring and some exercise for the turret gunners. But the starfighters would have showed up on their radar hours ago. The heat and radiation from a ship was just impossible to hide. So what was this projectile?

"Captain, we have a visual!"

"Put it up on the screen now!"

A holo-image projected itself on the main screen of the bridge. Hurling towards them was three green orbs of energy. They were too large to have been fired from a starship and too small to a meteor or an asteroid. Whatever they were, they were heading towards them fast

"What the hell are those?" the ensign exclaimed.

"Five seconds from impact captain!" Kekhan shouted the panic evident in his voice and the faces of the ensigns.

In the end there was only one option. "Shields to maximum power, brace for impact!"

Mandalorian Caldor Riu leaned against the wall of his monochrome cell. From his count, the accursed ship was four or five days away from his new home, Elimina. The copper planet was twenty times the size of Coruscant, making the gravity almost unbearable on the planet's surface. The air was toxic to humans and humanoid species. Then there was the greenhouse effect, making the surface temperature an average of 800 degrees Fahrenheit and that was on a good day. In short, the planet was a death sentence.

For the Republic, Elimina made the perfect prison planet. The only habitable part of the planet was the prison facility, which was lightly guarded by droids. Walking the planet's surface without any kind of protection suit was a death wish. Any foolish to try was found dead within a few minutes. This was where he would spend the remainder of his life.

"It's a joke," he said to himself with a smile. "It's all a fucking joke."

The Republic was pathetic. If they wanted him dead they were better off putting a blaster bolt in his head. This life incarceration was an insult. And for what? Killing a few senators and four Jedi foolish enough to get in his way? Like he said before, it was a joke. He was in his prime, only twenty five standard years old. There were countless battles left for his body, yet he was left to rot on some backwater planet. All thanks to one damned Jedi, Mace Windu.

He stared at his cybernetic hand. The Jedi had taken his organic hand in a single stroke and disabled his jetpack, all in only a few moves. He had told Windu to kill him but the Jedi simply deactivated his weapon, and signaled for the Republic guards to take him, robbing the Mandalorian of his honorable death. Windu's had damned him. Death without honor, death without glory was worse than any death he could think of.

Caldor looked at himself in the mirror above his basic sink. His light tanned skin was covered with scars from various battles and assassinations, all of which he remembered. Dark circles rung around his ebony eyes. He hadn't slept for three days. The sheer absurdity of his situation was enough to drive sleep away. The blue jumpsuit of Republic prisoners covered his toned body, which he worked hours to maintain; after all it was the only thing to do.

The clanking sound of the approaching security droid caught his attention.

"Dinner for prisoner M4988-90," it said in its regular high-pitched voice.

Caldor scoffed. "Dinner" was just synthetic made slop.

"What I would give for a decent slab of meat," he muttered. Or rather, what he would give for a decent shot at Mace Windu.

At that moment a massive impact shook the ship. Countless explosions ran across the vessel, destroying the droids in seconds. A second impact struck, hurling the ship to the right, making Caldor fly back against the wall of his cell. Fires blazed all over the floor as the alarms blared for the droids to handle the problem. A third impact tore through the ship's armor, sucking out all remaining droids before the back-up wall slammed down, sealing the hole. But as the Mandalorian recovered, the massive damage didn't catch his attention.

The shield that imprisoned him was flicking out, along with every shield on the prisoner block. Another explosion sounded in the distance that completely shorted out the shield, along with power on the entire floor.

The Mandalorian took one tentative step forward. His face scrunched together expecting some kind of shock or warning alarm. Instead only more explosions sounded across the ship. A smile crossed his lips as he picked up a leftover blaster from one of the droids. The eight other prisoners followed his lead as they met in the middle of the floor.

They were a ragtag bunch, himself, three Weequay pirates, a Wookiee, a tall muscular human, and two Twi'lek females, one blue, the other a light magenta. They stared at each other, each uncertain to make the first move. Caldor shrugged. If they weren't going to make a move, he would.

"State your names," he said. An order, not a request. His fellow prisoners glared at him, obviously not used to orders. He would fix that.

The human started off. "Atlas."

The blue twi'lek continued. "Malda."

"Falda," the magenta twi'lek said.

"Runuis," stated the first Weequay.

"Fakir," said the second Weequay.

"Guik," the third Weekquay.

Atlas motioned to the Wookiee. "He's Bowurrk."

Caldor looked over his new squad, a plan already forming in his head.

"I think it's time this ship changed captains."

Dion groaned as he felt the warmth of bacca lotion rub on his wounds. The blaring sounds of the alarms and ensigns mouthing off various damages brought him back to consciousness. The lights and monitors flicked on and off, with fires both small and large spreading over several panels. Several bodies laid on the cold floor as Kekhan fought to maintain order. Dion shook his head trying to rid himself of the stars in front of his eyes.

"Damage report…." He managed to groan out.

"Multiple hull breeches on the port of the ship!" cried a surviving ensign.

"Main power reactor down, secondary power down to less than 10%!" shouted another.

"Major fires in the core engines, security droids are non-responsive!"

"Shields are down! I can't reactivate them!"

"The prisoners have escaped from their cells! None of the automatic defenses are responding!"

"Any good news?" Dion groaned.

"We've sent a mayday signal to any Republic cruiser in the area," Kekhan said, helping Dion to his seat.

"Will they get here in time?"

As if on cue, the door slide open, revealing the prisoners.

"No," the Mandalorian said. "You won't."

The last thing Dion heard was the sound of blaster fire.

OOOOOO

"From what we know the transport ship the _Hanoi _was hit by some kind of meteor," reported Coruscant Security Lieutenant Tan Divo. The law enforcer was flanked by two CSF droids in Chancellor Valorum's office. Valorum ran his hand through his graying hair. The security force had received the _Hanoi's _distress signal, it was scrambled and filled with static but it didn't take long for the officers to figure out the problem. However by the time back-up ships had arrived, the Hanoi was gone. Six hours had passed and still no word.

"Have you located the ship?" Valorum asked, drumming his fingers on the desk.

"No, sir," Divo replied.

Another sigh from the chancellor. "Do you know what kind of meteor it was?"

"No, sir," Divo said again, noticing the chancellor's frustration.

"What do you know then lieutenant?" Valorum snapped, throwing up his arms.

"Peace chancellor," Yoda said from his seat across the chancellor's desk. "Important it is, for you to keep your temper."

Valorum took a breath before addressing Tan Divo again, his temper lowered. "Which prisoners escaped?"

"That we do know chancellor," Divo said with pride. The officer inserted a portable disk into his holo-projector and presented the data to the three men. The pictures of the prisoners rotated as Divo listed off their names.

"Malda and Falda are two twi'lek assassins. We arrested them in connection to the murder of several members of the Commerce Guild We also charged them with the assassination of six diplomats. They seem to favor poisons and decapitation. It wasn't an easy job catching them, lost a few men along the way but…."

"Lieutenant," Mace Windu interrupted sternly. "Who we are dealing with takes precedence over your methods of catching them."

"Forgive me master Jedi, sometimes I just get caught up in our success…."

"The other names lieutenant," Windu said again.

Tivo shot a brief glare to Mace Windu, one that the Jedi easily ignored.

"As I was saying," Tivo said as he flipped to the next prisoner. "Runuis, Fakir, and Guik are members of some kind of large Weequay gang that functions on the Outer Rim. They obviously have ties here on Coruscant. We arrested them for smuggling in death sticks and spices. They surrendered so we have no intelligence on what they can do.

"Atlas is a free agent. He hires himself out to the highest bidder. But he basis his wages on how much he enjoyed his fight. As you can imagine, there are countless murders on his record. Thanks to some medical mumbo jumbo, once his adrenaline starts going, he's almost impossible to stop. It took us a while, but I have to say my office does damn good work."

A look from Windu stopped the man's bragging. The lieutenant cleared his throat and continued.

"Bowurrk is a Wookiee outcast. The natives call him a mad-claw after he used his claws to kill his clan leader. After that I guess he developed a taste for it, he's been murdering ever since then. He came to Coruscant to kill representatives of the Trade Federation. And the last one, you'll get a kick out of this one Master Windu…."

This earned a full on glare from Mace. A mental nudge from Yoda eased the irked master.

"Caldor Riu, a Mandalorian bounty hunter/assassin. We suspect he has ties to the terrorist group Death Watch. He came to Coruscant to kill the Duke of Mandalore, but thanks to you Master Windu, he was apprehended. He's also killed seven senators and four Jedi. He, like the others on our now missing ship, was sentenced to a life's imprisonment on Elimina."

"Dangerous opponents they are," Yoda sighed. He turned to his companion. "Defeat them, an juaverage Jedi cannot."

"I agree, I will compile a list of capable Jedi on the Council."

"Do you believe that one Jedi can defeat such seasoned killers?" Valorum asked.

Before the Jedi masters could answer, an alarm sounded on Tan Divo's wrist communicator.

"If you would excuse me," the lieutenant said as he took the call. "Yes, what do you have for me?"

"Lieutenant!" the officer cried. "We have a situation! One of the escaped prisoners, Atlas, he's here on the lower levels!"

The four men's eyes instantly grew alert.

"What?" Tivo exclaimed. "You want to explain to me how a wanted criminal just suddenly appears on my streets!"

"I-I-I don't know sir. But he's running amok! We can't stop him!"

"Hold position! I'll be done there with back-up in a few moments!" Divo turned on his heel and exited the room without another word. Mace glanced at Yoda and Valorum, waiting for their order.

"Go you must," Yoda nodded. "Ensure no lives will be lost you will."

"Yes master." Mace rushed out of the room, with his heart admittedly pounding in excitement for the upcoming battle.

OOOOO

It took four repulsorlifts for Mace to reach the lower levels. Master Yoda told him that Qui-Gon and Kit Fisto would be joining him shortly. Mace was grateful, he would need all the help he could get. The screams of terror and the sound of blaster bolts flying urged the Jedi master forward. He found Tan Divo surrounded by his men, who were blocking off the area.

"Ah," the officer said. "Master Windu, how nice of you to finally show up."

Mace's eyebrow twitched but decided to ignore the lieutenant. "What's the situation?"

"We have it under control master Jedi," Divo assured. "We've faced Atlas before."

An explosion and the cries of several officers proved him wrong. Within moments a tall muscular human charged towards him like a berserker. Blaster bolts bounced off the man like stones. He swung his massive arms like a club swatting away officers as he went.

"How did he break through our perimeter?" Divo exclaimed.

"I told you, sir!" the panicked officer said. "Nothing can stop him!"

Mace activated his lightsaber. "We'll see about that." The Jedi leapt over the barricade and rushed at the charging berserker, ready to meet the threat head on. But someone beat him to the punch.

A small bundle of brown rushed past the master and leapt towards Atlas. With a determined yell the bundle struck the criminal with its short legs that somehow hurled the berserker six feet backwards. A flip brought it to the ground where Mace finally got a good look at it. Or rather him. There was no mistaking that wild hair and the monkey-like tail.

"Hey!" Kakarot shouted at the recovering criminal. "You ruined my lunch and hurt my friend! You're gonna pay for that!"

The loud hum of his saber filled the air before Kakarot charged towards his foe.

AN: Man, this chapter took forever. It just absolutely refused to get off the ground. At first it was going to be Paragus trying to find a way to contact Frieza, but that wasn't enough to fill a whole chapter. Then I figured I go into Broly's head for a bit. But since at this point he's only eight and everyone more or less knows his backstory, there wasn't much I could do there either. So after a while I just pulled down an idea I was saving for later chapters. The prisoner escape was only supposed to be a one-shot thing but I felt like I needed to really set up the threat these guys posed, plus I actually started to find them interesting. I hope you guys feel the same. So what was Kakarot doing down in the lower levels? Which friend is he talking about? How did Atlas ruin his lunch? You'll just have to find out in the next exciting episode of Dragonball….ahem….Padawan Kakarot. See you all next chapter, and please review, I love to know how I'm doing so far. Also any idea for future chapters would be great! See you all next chapter!


	6. Invitation

Padawan Kakarot

Chapter 6: Invitation

**Eight hours prior to Atlas's attack **

Paragus rubbed down a pulsing vein. Walking among the damage caused by Broly's little "fit" would have been bad enough, but listening to Krang list off the damage and the cost to have it all repaired nearly pushed the Saiyan over the edge. The purple octopus rambled on about the cost of the initial material of the walls, the cost of mining, then shipping the materials, and then the cost of paying the workers. Paragus gritted his teeth, feeling his ki rise. He was a Saiyan damn it, not a contractor! It took nearly thirty minutes but finally Krang reached the full price of repairs, seventy-thousand credits. Broly's rampage only lasted, at most, six minutes, and yet he had managed to deal damage equivalent to an aerial bombardment. Paragus didn't want to think about what the castle would have looked like if Broly's rampage had lasted thirty minutes. The elder Saiyan shook his head. He didn't have to imagine, he already knew what it would look like.

Complete destruction. The castle would be rubble, the forest around them would be mere splinters, and perhaps the whole planet would be destroyed. But then, Broly didn't need thirty minutes to accomplish such things. No, in truth, in thirty minutes it was far more likely that the entire solar system would be destroyed. The aging Saiyan felt a chill run down his spine at the thought of it. Seventy-thousand credits was a small price to pay to keep his life. The day when he could establish a new Saiyan home-world and have the Saiyan race dominate all other species, was the day he would allow himself to die. But looking over the list of damages, Paragus could feel that dream float further away from him.

His son's legendary power was both his greatest asset and his great liability.

"Contact those workers," Paragus said. "I want them on site by next week. And tell them to bring the strongest electric generators they can find. They'll be installed in every corridor and room of the castle. Whatever is left is to be placed in Broly's room, all at full power."

Krang flinched. "Y-yes my lord."

"Lord Paragus," a soldier said from behind them. "Master Sidious has summoned you."

Paragus had to bite his lip to keep from growling. He was being summoned? Like some low-class servant? This Sidious was pushing his luck.

"I'll be there momentarily," he said in between his teeth.

"He wishes to see you now, sir," the soldier said.

Paragus shot a glare at the silver-clad soldier, making him shift in his stance. "Very well, who am I to keep the great _Master _Sidious waiting?"

He confirmed the plans to rebuild with Krang before making his way to the comm room. The azure image of the strange Sith awaited him. Even with his hood shielding his features, Paragus could tell his benefactor was none too pleased.

"What happened?" Sidious growled, exposing his fang like teeth.

Paragus took a knee and kept his gaze to the floor. "I do not know what you're referring to Lord Sidious."

"Your attempts at deception are useless against me, Paragus," he said, his hidden eyes drilling into the Saiyan.

Paragus met his gaze. He had no reason to fear a hologram. "There was a minor accident. My men and I have it under control."

"A minor accident?" the Sith repeated. "My apprentice destroying a portion of the palace, killing ten soldiers, damaging a Republic prison ship, and creating a hijacking, is _not_ minor!"

A bead of sweat rolled down Paragus' neck. Broly's rampage was only a few minutes old. How did Sidious catch wind of it so soon? Were there spies among his men? There had to be, they weren't actually his men, just mercenaries Sidious paid for initially. So of course their true loyalties were with the self-titled, Sith Lord. Those spies would soon learn that they had more to fear from a betrayed Saiyan than a cowardly Sith.

"I was not aware that Broly had damaged a ship," Paragus answered truthfully. He had seen three of Broly's ki blasts curve into the atmosphere but at the time Paragus didn't give them a second thought.

"You should spend more time on the Holonet, Paragus." With a wave of his hand, several news screens popped into existence around Sidious. Reporters of various species shared the same information. A Republic prison ship called the _Hanoi _had been struck, by a strange meteor some called it; others said it was a new type of weapon obtained by pirates. Whatever the cause, the results were the same. Eight dangerous criminals had hijacked the _Hanoi _and taken it off grid. Paragus looked over the information, his face unmoving.

"What does this have to do with Broly?" he asked. "They don't know where those blasts originated from. They don't even know what it is."

Sidious waved the screens away. "The Republic knows that the _Hanoi_ was passing through this system when it was attacked. They know that, save for your planet, the system is uninhabited. And they know that no known pirate ship or meteor was in the vicinity at the time of the attack."

Paragus grimaced. Sidious was both a coward and paranoid it seemed. "I fail to see your worries, Lord Sidious."

"Then you are a fool! It will not take the Republic long to discover your stronghold and the existence of my apprentice! Deception, misdirection, and concealment are the tools of the Sith. Without them we expose ourselves to the Jedi and the order will be eliminated."

This time Paragus allowed himself to growl. "My_ son_ is a Saiyan. Power, technique, and battle are our tools. Let these "Jedi" come. Broly and I can wipe them out like the pests that they are!"

Sidious folded his hands in his sleeves. "The Mandalorians and the old Sith Empire once thought as you did, Paragus. They challenged the Jedi in open war on countless occasions and the Jedi defeated them each time. Now, the Mandalorian warrior culture is all but extinct and the Sith are merely legend whispered in the dark. And it is in the dark we shall remain until the Jedi are at their weakest. Until then, the dark is our ally and my apprentice will expose us with his actions."

"Then you are a coward!" Paragus barked. "You have no idea what Broly is capable of! What can these Jedi do to the Legendary Super Saiyan, when he can easily destroy their planet with a single attack?"

"You know nothing Paragus," Sidious said. "The ability to destroy a planet is insignificant next to the power of the Force."

Paragus felt his ki flare. "The Force? That useless mediation Broly does for hours on end and can only move small objects? You think that your little trance has any bearing on Saiyan might? Our bodies are made for battle! Anything you or these Jedi can throw at us we can take! I have nothing to fear from this "Force" you keep babbling about!"

Sidious remained silent for a moment. Paragus smirked. He should have done this from the start. Maybe now the coward would see just how pathetic this whole "Force" business was and let Broly get back to what he did best. A few seconds passed and Paragus was sure he had won their little verbal spar. After all, he had spoken the truth. What could the Force do to a pure-blooded Saiyan?

At that moment, Sidious raised his arm in a grabbing gesture. Paragus cocked an eyebrow unsure what the coward was up to. Suddenly the Saiyan felt as though a nose was wrapped around his neck. His hands flew to his throat yet felt nothing but his own skin. Despite that fact, his windpipe continued to constrict. A choked gasp for air escaped his lips as his arms flailed about trying to find the source of this strange attack. He could almost feel his lungs begin to shrivel from the lack of oxygen. There was tug on the invisible nose, hoisting Paragus into the air like a doll. The Saiyan's legs flailed about, trying and failing to strike the source of this attack. His eyes began to roll back into his skull and his surroundings began to grow dark. But he could still hear the sinister cackle of Darth Sidious.

"H-H-How are….you….d-doing…this?"

Sidious tightened his imaginary grip one last time, before dropping his arm. The noose disappeared and Paragus slumped to all fours. A coughing fit erupted from his body as he struggled to regain control of himself.

"Now you see, Paragus," Sidious said, returning his hands to his sleeves. "There is far more to the Force than what an ignorant monkey like you can comprehend."

The all too familiar slur smacked Paragus like a haymaker. Despite his weakened body, Paragus flew to his feet and fired rapid blasts at the image of Sidious. But the Sith merely laughed when the blasts passed through the hologram and tore through the walls of the chamber. Suddenly the Saiyan was back in Frieza's palace unable to do a thing while the mutant mocked the entire Saiyan race and duped them into doing his bidding. And just like Frieza, it seemed that Sidious had abilities that Paragus could not comprehend. Trying anything now would be a wasted effort. He was powerless.

The Saiyan took a knee before Sidious. "My apologies….my Lord…."

"Fix this mess, Paragus," Sidious said simply. "Use any means you see fit and don't let this happen again."

Without another word, the holo-image flicked off, leaving Paragus alone in the dark.

The heat from his blasts sizzled in the walls. The hissing sound echoed around the small chamber, yet Paragus heard nothing. His hand kept passing over his throat where Sidious had demonstrated the power of the Force. The coward had to be thousands of light-years away yet he still managed to attack him. How? From what little had seen of the Force, the user had to be close to whatever object they wanted to move. The furthest object he had seen Broly move was four yards away from him. Was there such a brobdingnagian difference between master and apprentice? How could he hope to overcome such a foe with what little he knew of the Force? There had to be a way to learn more, information was power after all. A holo-net search could potentially tell him what he needed to know but it wouldn't be enough. He needed to see a master of the Force in action and study their every move. But who? There were so many Jedi and much like the Saiyans, they could not all be at the same power level. Paragus needed the strongest Jedi as his mark.

"Krang!" he called. The octopus had proven useful with all his information. According to him, he's had some contact with the Jedi when they halted his smuggling operations in the Mid-Rim. Although Paragus doubted the Jedi would send their best to deal with such a minor threat. It was a fair start at the very least.

"Yes my lord?" Krang said, entering the damaged chamber.

"You've had contact with the Jedi. Who would you say is their strongest fighter?"

"I'm not sure my lord…" he said, flinching under Paragus's glare. "The Jedi do not put emphasis on combat or measuring power levels. They insist that they are peacekeepers, not soldiers."

Paragus scoffed. "Peacekeepers don't need laser swords that cut through any substance."

"I did encounter a man who may know," Krang said.

"Is that so?"

"Yes. A Mandalorian named Caldor Riu. I smuggled a great deal of weapons for him. And one day he asked me for a number of my top shelf weapons for a hit against a senator. When I asked him what he needed the weapons for, he said that guarding the senator was a Mace Windu. Caldor seemed very intent on fighting him."

"Why is that so important?"

"The Mandalorians are much like you Saiyans, my lord. They value war and combat. When a Mandalorian like Caldor is intent on fighting someone, it is fair to assume that person is strong. Caldor was one of the absolute best and yet from what I hear, Mace Windu defeated him rather quickly and easily."

Paragus rubbed his chin. "Where is this Caldor now?"

"He was on that ship the _Hanoi_ that Broly damaged."

A smile crept across Paragus's face as an idea came to him. "Krang, get in touch with your old smuggling contacts and get as many weapons and battle droids as you can."

"Yes my lord."

"I have a ship to find."

OOOOO

**Five Hours Prior to Atlas's attack **

Caldor Riu reclined in the captain's chair. The bodies of the Hanoi crew had been jettisoned. Atlas and Bowurrk were searching the ship for any survivors, while the rest of his little team remained on the bridge discussing the next move. Communications were cut, no Republic ship would be in pursuit. Thanks to the weequays abroad, the sentry droids had been shutdown. Caldor made a mental note to ask if the droids could be reformatted as well. The initial search of the ship yielded no treasures or any other items for bartering. Even the blasters carried by the guards were subpar. They needed to land to either separate or jump ship. But the question was where.

"We shouldn't have killed the guards," the blue twi'lek Malda said. "Having hostages would have given us more leverage."

Caldor spun in the chair. "Hostage situations are long and arduous. There weren't enough of us to keep all the guards in check, especially not with these cheap blasters. And more importantly, the Republic would never cave in to our demands. They would sooner blow us all out of the sky."

"So what now, oh fearless leader?" Falda asked with a mock bow. "The ship's power cells are damaged. We only have six hours before they fail completely. What we need is another ship."

"Where would we get one?" Caldor asked simply. "We land anywhere and the Republic will be on to us."

"We should head to Hondo's," one of the weequays, Fakir said. "He's always welcoming new scum. And I'm sure he would pay handsomely for a Republic ship."

"There's only enough power in the ship for at most three hyperspace jumps," Caldor said. "Hondo's hideout is, at most, eight jumps away."

"You've had dealings with Hondo?" Guik asked.

Caldor shrugged. "He's supplied me with weapons and ships for some hits in the past. He can be quite the pirate. He'd want something in return for his help, and we have nothing to barter with."

Guik growled. "Then what do you suggest Mandalorian! You've done nothing in the past hour but sit in that chair and bark orders! We're not your slaves or your henchmen!"

"Calm yourself, weequay," Caldor said. "I am merely suggesting that there should be discretion in our actions. The Republic will be on our tail in due time and the Jedi along with them. We can't make it too easy for them to find us."

"Which brings us back to the original question," Falda said. "Where do we go?"

A notification buzz on the communication panel caught the criminals' eyes. Its chime echoed through the bridge making the three weequays jump in surprise. Caldor approached the panel with caution. Communications had been cut. The ship should have been unreachable using official channels. Which meant that whoever was trying to reach them was no ally of the Republic or the Jedi. Something Caldor could always welcome. The Mandalorian accepted the hail and the cerulean image of a spiky haired man in a white cape that draped over his armor and a simian-like tail around his waist, entered the bridge.

"Greetings former prisoners of the Hanoi," the man began. "I am Paragus. And I have a…proposition for you all."

"How did you reach this frequency?" Caldor asked.

"How I found you is irrelevant," Paragus said. "What matters is that I have a job that I believe will benefit all of us. I can pay you all handsomely, however I can also offer something else, something that surpasses mere credits as compensation."

"And just what would that be?"

"Revenge."

Caldor froze and stared at his metallic hand. He could still feel the lightsaber blade slicing through his bones and muscles. He could still see the stoic face of Mace Windu behind his eyes lids. The gears in his prosthetic grinded against each other as the Mandalorian made a tight fist that would have dug into his skin if skin still existed on his hand.

"I see I've gotten your attention," Paragus said. "If you wish to hear more, meet me at the Dealer's Den cantina on Nar Shaddaa."

The image flicked out, leaving Caldor silent. The other criminals glanced at each other, not sure what to do with their self-appointed leader. Several seconds passed before the bridge doors swished open and Atlas and Bowurrk strolled onto the scene.

"What did I miss?" the human asked glancing at the silent Mandalorian. The reminder of sound seemed to snap Caldor out of his musing. The Mandalorian locked eyes with his partners, a dangerous edge seeping into his voice as he spoke.

"Plot a course to Nar Shaddaa immediately."

OOOOO

**Present Time **

"Hey!" Kakarot shouted at the recovering criminal. "You ruined my lunch and hurt my friend! You're gonna pay for that!"

The loud hum of his saber filled the air before Kakarot charged towards his foe. The small Saiyan hurled himself at the seven foot tall human, his blue blade slashing at his smooth bald head. Atlas ducked, allowing the saber to hit only air. His fist shot up, sinking into Kakarot's torso. The monkey boy's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets at the impact. He froze in the air, allowing the criminal to grab onto his tail. The pain in his stomach suddenly felt meager compared to absolute agony that ran through is body. Kakarot cried out but it was cut short when Atlas slammed the child to the ground.

"The Jedi are sending children after me?" Atlas scoffed. "I'm insulted." The criminal raised his foot, ready to crush the boy like an insect when what felt like an invisible sledgehammer slammed into his chest. He flew almost ten feet back, crashing into a nearby restaurant. The bald human shook his head, his chest still reeling from the blow. The sound of another lightsaber caught his ears. Standing in front of the youngling was Mace Windu, his arm still outstretched from his Force attack.

"You're fight is with me," he said in no uncertain terms. "Leave this young one out it."

Atlas cracked his neck as he rose. "I got no problem with that, Windu. I was looking to take you on, anyway."

Mace glanced over his shoulder at Tan Divo and the other Coruscant officers. "Take the youngling and fall back. This one is mine."

"Master Windu, I'm sure my men and I-," Divo attempted.

"_**Now**_."

Mace's eyes never left the seven-foot human, but he felt Tivo move back through the Force. The Jedi master flourished his lightsaber as he sunk into the Force. Danger seeped off Atlas. But most of the danger radiated off the criminal's limbs, indicating he had no weapons. Mace narrowed his eyes, taking a step forward.

Atlas smirked. "How about we level the playing field, Master Windu."

A single shot fired from one of the countless rooftops. The crimson blot struck his wrist, forcing him to drop his lightsaber. Mace gritted his teeth, quickly using the Force to dull the pain. But before he could regain his wits, Atlas's shoulder slammed into him. Mace dug his feet into the street, slowing his slide. The moment the master glanced up, Atlas was upon him once more. The master's forearms blocked four jabs, but on the fifth Atlas stopped short and launched his knee at Mace's midsection. Mace stepped back; the blow breezing past his robes, then dashed forward, a sidekick slamming into Atlas's massive chest. The criminal doubled over with a groan, allowing Mace to close the gap with a knee to his exposed head. The Force supported blow knocked the criminal to the flat of his back, blood oozing out from his now crooked nose.

The Jedi Master remained in a stance, waiting for his opponent's next move. Despite the criminal's current state, the Force still alerted him of danger. Flexing his wrist, Mace was reminded of the blast that shot from beyond his senses. He stretched out his awareness but felt nothing on the rooftops. How? Were the culprits somehow hiding from him? A groan from Atlas brought Mace's focus back to the criminal. He rose with a chuckle, his bent nose the only indicator of any damage.

He snapped his nose back into place. "That all you got Master Jedi?"

"Not quite."

With a boost from the Force, Mace dashed towards his opponent. The new round began with six quick jabs from Atlas. The master's forearms flew up, blocking the first five. On the sixth, Mace spun on the balls of his feet and slammed his elbow into the criminal's temple. The bald man staggered but kept on his feet. He charged, attempting another shoulder ram. Mace sidestepped the incoming tackle, his foot meeting Atlas's ribs. However, the blow did nothing but make the giant wince. The criminal's hands latched onto the master's extended leg and hurled Mace over his shoulder like unwanted luggage. Mace soared through the air, the streets of Coruscant spinning around him. The Force granted Mace a vision of the incoming wall, giving the master the forewarning he needed to steady himself and land feet first against the structure.

Mace launched himself off the wall with the speed of a rocket. Atlas held his position, a confident smirk on his face. He lowered his fists to his hips, exposing his chest for attack. A forward flip positioned the master into a flying sidekick that struck full force. A thin shockwave blew through the street at the impact while Mace slid to a stop. But as the momentum left him, Atlas remained unharmed, save for being a few feet down the road. The dust from Mace's boot was the only mark on his chest.

Mace rose and shifted back into a stance. "A durable one I see."

Atlas brushed the dirt off. "You don't know the half of it."

The master inched forward. If bare fists weren't going to end this, then there was another option. A quick tug of the Force brought his lightsaber to his waiting hand and its amethyst light filled the streets. The Force centered on his body as he displayed the opening movements of his personal style, Vaapad.

"Surrender, Atlas."

"Why? It's just starting to get fun."

The criminal flicked his left wrist and a sharp three inch blade sprang out from his knuckles. He repeated the process with his right, and suddenly Mace understood why the Force had alerted him to the criminal's hands. Without another word, the giant lunged forward his right blade thrusting at Mace's torso while the left hacked at his neck. Mace's saber met both blades. Parrying the first blow, and blocking the second. His saber holding off the weapon, Mace shot out his hand, knocking Atlas back several yards. As the criminal attempted to regain his footing, Mace closed the gap between them and attacked, his purple blade seemingly striking in every direction. But with each strike, Atlas caught Mace's blade with his own. The master's offensive pushed the criminal back, unable to form a counter attack. Mace feinted a thrust before spinning on the balls of his feet for a slash at Atlas's wrist. The blade struck head on but merely bounced off where the bone should have been located. Mace's brief pause in surprise gave the criminal the moment he needed to slash at his torso. Mace jumped back before the blow could go any deeper. But the thick feel of his blood seeping onto his robes was unmistakable.

"So Jedi do bleed," Atlas chucked, licking off the blood from his blade.

Mace narrowed his eyes. "A lucky blow does not equate victory."

"No, but this does."

Suddenly, a sharp pinch struck Mace's neck. The master's hand flew up to the abnormality and pulled out a primitive dart. Before he could even ask, his vision became indistinct. Sensation began to leave his fingers, making his grip on his lightsaber loosen. His knees buckled, unable to support his weight. The master rubbed his eyes and shook his head, sinking deeper into the Force to support himself. But the Force was weak in him. It was as if something was blocking his connection. He saw Atlas retract his blades and reach into his pockets to reveal a holo-communicator. In only a few button presses, the blue image of a Mandalorian in full battle armor was before him.

"Greetings, Master Windu," the Mandalorian said. "Are you enjoying the new poison we developed for you?"

"I do not believe we are acquainted Mandalorian."

The armored man shrugged. "No need to worry about that. We have plenty of time to become reacquainted. But enough of these petty introductions, we have more pressing matters to attend to."

Mace struggled to reply, but only a groan escaped his lips.

"I can see the poison is already working through your system." The Mandalorian held up a vial. "I hold in my hand the only known antidote for that string of poison. If you want it, come alone to the moon of Irragaten in the Japrael system."

"And if I refuse?"

"Well, other than dying a horrible death," the Mandalorian motioned to the rooftop to Mace's left. A wookie and two twi'leks held an unconscious youngling by the throat. The master couldn't make out the details but he could see the debris and bruises all along the youngling's body. "This one dies along with you."

"Whatever problems you have with me is to be settled between us," Mace said. "Involving a child proves to me that you cannot face me alone."

"Do not insult my honor!"

"I am not insulting your honor," Mace said simply. "I am merely denying its existence."

The Mandalorian growled under his helmet. His fists tightened at his sides. "Let's see you continue to deny my honor at Irragaten, _Master_ Windu. I will not be insulted or ignored. If you are not on the moon in 24 standard hours, the child dies!"

"Very well."

The villain chuckled. "I've waited quite a while for this opportunity Windu. Do not disappoint me."

The image flicked out of existence, as did Atlas and the three criminals on the rooftops. Mace struggled to his feet, his mind racing. From behind him he felt the arrival of Qui-Gon and Kit Fisto.

"What happened here?" Kit Fisto asked, regarding the destruction.

Mace would only utter a few words before darkness overtook him.

"Bring me a ship."

OOOOOO

From his private quarters, Paragus looked over the video feed of Atlas's battle with Mace Windu. The Saiyan sat engrossed with the feed, up until the very end. As he watched the Jedi Master collapse, a chuckle passed through his lips.

"Everything is going according to plan."

AN: Whew this chapter took forever to come together. Plus it's later than I would have liked but oh well. Not much Kakarot in this chapter but that'll be fixed. Anyways I hope you enjoyed it. Please tell me what you thought. See you all next update.


	7. Turbulence

Padawan Kakarot

Chapter 7: Turbulence

Mace opened his eyes and the warm pristine light of the temple's Hall of Healing welcomed him. Immediately he attempted to rise and immediately his body reprimanded him. Nausea gripped his stomach and the inside of his skull pounded as if someone was using his cranium as a gong. His hands ran to the slash wound. Already Mace could feel that his body had begun the process of healing, due in no small part to the med-packs and bacta technology at the healers' disposal. The bleeding had been halted and the wound was already closing. On his neck, save for a very slight bump, there was no indication of the dart wound.

But that only raised more questions than answers. He had very minor injuries which were, for all intents and purposes, healed. So why did his skull continue to plague him? Why was there such a lack of sensation in his hands? Perhaps the answer lied in the Force. The Jedi Master managed to sit up, despite his body's protests and rested against the headboard of the cot. He closed his eyes and took several deep breaths to center his mind. But instead of the soothing and warm sensation of the Force, Mace only encountered pain. A sharp piercing pain as if he was walking through a road of glass barefooted. Mace intensified his breathing, trying to force his way through this new jungle of discomfort, but the stabbing sensation only persisted. The master gritted his teeth, trying to sense the source. His skull responded with an almost debilitating pain that forced Mace out of his mediation.

"What did that dart do to me?" Mace grumbled a loud.

The door to the room slid open to reveal the small green bundle that was Master Yoda along with a Jedi healer. "Ah, awake you are," the ancient master said as he entered. "Relived I am."

"I appreciate your concern master," Mace replied.

"But concerned _you _are," Yoda continued. "Confusion, frustration, and worry I feel."

Mace merely nodded. Through the Force any Jedi could feel out another person's emotional state. But Yoda took it to a completely different level, enough to disturb several members of the Jedi Council. Mace however was far too accustomed to the grand master's quirks to be surprised anymore.

"Before I collapsed, one of Atlas's allies struck me with some kind of dart," Mace said as the healer looked over him. "It's making my connection to the Force…..painful."

"Unusual poison this is," Yoda said as he casually pulled a seat towards him with the Force. "Many questions this brings."

"We have managed to identify the poison Master Windu," the healer said. "There's no official name to it, but the main component seems to be a fluid excreted from the ysalamiri lizards on Myrkr."

Mace grimaced. He had heard of the creatures in passing. They were reptiles who had evolved to "push back" the Force in order to protect themselves from the predators, the vornskrs, who hunted using the Force. There have been instances where Jedi encountered smugglers and bounty hunters utilizing these creatures in order to hide themselves or contraband they had. But intensified pain had never been a part of the experience.

The healer sensed his confusion. "The fluid is being augmented by a chemical compound that behaves like an artificial virus. It seeks out the midi-chlorians in your blood, isolates them….and then kills them."

Yoda gripped the head of his cane. "Sophisticated poison, this is. Strange for a bounty hunter to have."

"What's the worst case scenario?" Mace asked simply.

"From our understanding if the poison continues to break down the midi-chlorians, then there will be no buffer between your bloodstream and the more lethal aspects of the poison. It will infect your red blood cells, making it difficult for them to carry blood. You'll lose sensation in your limbs, until finally your heart and brain will cease function from lack of blood," the healer said, her voice down to a whisper.

"And with all the midi-chlorians dead…I will be unable to feel the Force," Mace surmised.

"Correct Master Windu."

"Is there a cure?"

"Other than the antidote the bounty hunter says he has, no," the healer said. "We're trying to synthesize an antidote ourselves, but it will take time."

"How long?" Mace asked.

"It is difficult to say. It could take a week, a month. We are able to give you medicine that will stall the process."

Mace nodded. "That is all I will require."

"Insistent on going you are," Yoda said.

Mace rolled up his sleeve for the healer to administer the medicine. "Yes master, I do not see any other option. This madman has kidnapped a youngling and I know for a fact he is deranged enough to follow through with his threat. I must go."

"I understand," Yoda said with a solemn nod. "Great peril in this task, I feel."

"Agreed." The ancient master was rarely wrong in what he sensed. In all likelihood, Yoda could see his death in the Force. But Jedi are trained to have no fear of such things. If he were heading into his death, so be it, but he would not allow an innocent life to be cut short because of one deranged Mandalorian and his minions. "Have we identified the youngling who was taken?"

"Pikota Lorkesh," Yoda said. "Of Jedi Minder Madre's clan."

"That's Pik!" a young voice exclaimed from one of the far beds.

Mace looked over and recognized the boy's wild hair and monkey tail immediately. But the fact that he didn't sense the youngling's presence earlier troubled him. Kakarot sprang from his cot and dashed over to the three Jedi.

"Master, if you're going to save Pik, you gotta take me with you!"

Mace glowered at the boy. If he were a more jovial man, he might have laughed at the request. "No," he said with as much stern as he could muster. "This is far beyond any of your training young one."

For many younglings one simple look from him was enough to quiet them and halt any misbehaving, but Kakarot seemed undeterred. "Please! He's my friend, I gotta go save him!"

"Courage you have young one," Yoda said. "But wisdom you must have as well. For a youngling, far too dangerous this is."

The padawan looked down. "But it's my fault he's in this mess in the first place."

"How so?" Mace asked as the healer completed the treatment.

Kakarot kicked a nearby pebble, unable to look at them fully. "I-It was a dare. Bruck's been messing with Pik a lot, calling him names and stuff. So Tourin and I told Bruck to stop and Bruck said he would if Pik did a dare. He dared Pik to spend an hour outside the temple walls alone."

It took all of Mace's self-control to not roll his eyes or slap his forehead. All this trouble because of one childish incident? The Force was not without a sense of humor it seemed.

"Encouraged your friend did you," Yoda said as if he already knew which didn't surprise Mace.

Kakarot nodded solemnly. "But Pik didn't want to go alone, so I went with him. We walked around a little but after a while we got lost. I got hungry so I we stopped at a restaurant to eat. That's when that big guy blew up the place…."

Yoda nodded. "Understand I do."

"That's why I gotta go save Pik!" Kakarot insisted.

Mace pulled down his sleeve as he rose of his cot. "Your sense of responsibility is admirable young one. But I will not endanger another young life. Wait with your clan members in the archives. I will bring back your friend."

"Yes master…." The boy grumbled and made his way out of the chamber, sulking with every step.

"Has a ship been prepared?" Mace asked as he grabbed his lightsaber.

"Awaits you in the docking bay it does," Yoda said with a nod. "Careful you must be. Dangerous these bounty hunters are."

"I understand master."

"May the Force be with you."

Mace bowed and exited the halls, sensing that despite the poisonous handicap, he would need the Force now more than ever.

OOOOOOO

The arranged ship was a recently upgraded YT-1250 freighter dubbed _Anansi_.Carbon scoring littered the round grey ship with rust eating away at what was left of the chrome sliver on the hull. Several modified weapons were mounted on the aging ship in matter that made Mace question how secure they were. The interior was no better. Dried blood seemed to serve as the paint for the walls of the ship and floor. Debris from destroyed droids of various types were scattered throughout the main ring corridor. The ship's main engine had seen better days as well. With each maneuver the engine moaned, vibrating the walls like an angry beast. _Anansi's_ pilot, a man named Jax, assured Mace that his ship would get him to Irragaten without a problem. Mace was in no position or mood to argue with the pilot. All he asked was that he not be disturbed.

The Jedi sat in the small crew's lounge, his hood raised and a datapad in his lap. The room dark; save for the ambient light of the dejarik board in front of him. The Jedi spoke slowly and clearly into the datapad.

**From the Private Journals of Mace Windu: **

**[Initial Irragaten Entry]: **

**I can still feel the poison in my veins. I should not be able to due to the treatment administrated by the healer. But the Force has always worked in ways that surpassed science and logic. **

**And it would appear a poison designed to hinder the Force, works in the same manner.**

**I probably should not be dwelling so much on this poison, at least not yet. But I cannot help but feel a certain fascination with it and how a killer like Caldor Riu stumbled upon it. **

**So far it has dulled a great deal of my senses. **_**Anansi's**_** pilot, Jax, and his twi'lek co-pilot Zoraa, appears to me only as mere echoes in the Force and not the full auras of life as they should be. When I first came aboard, I attempted to lift one of the pilot's many crates of supplies with the Force. I could barely manage to lift it a meter off the ground. When I set it down, I believed I heard something grunt inside. **

**Perhaps the poison causes mild hallucinations as well? **

**A proper test of my abilities before departure would have been wiser, but time did not allow for it. Regardless, I'll find out soon enough. **

**For now, I must focus. **

**Concentrating on what I do know about this situation would serve me better. **

**Irragaten is a small terrestrial moon in the Onderon system. It was discovered by refugees attempting to escape the theocracy created by Sith Lord Freedon Nadd. Originally a vast canyon that encapsulates almost the entire moon, the refugees of various wars over the years turned the canyon into an elaborate labyrinth city, which only those who have lived there know how to navigate. It is said that the walls of each building are filled with the skeletons of those who were foolish enough to chase the refugees there. **

**With the stabilization of Onderon over the centuries, the moon has gone mainly unused and stands now as a historic ruin for tourists and archeologists. With its countless traps, false paths, and near limitless cityscape it is the perfect hideaway for eight dangerous criminals.**

**Caldor Riu is another piece in this puzzle I have prior knowledge of. He is a Mandalorian bounty hunter who fashions himself out to be some great warrior. I have met a few like him in my missions for the order. Too often they rant about how they live by a code of honor and how noble their warrior ways are. I have yet to witness any evidence of such honor and nobility. Many of the Mandalorians I have faced have more in common with the thugs employed by the Hutts than noble warriors. **

**It is true that Mandalore once had a legendary warrior culture. Many Mandalorian soldiers were skilled enough to defeat and at times, kill Jedi. But what Caldor and the other Mandalorians like him do not understand is that those days are over. The Mandalorians overplayed their hand in the last great war and their people, their culture, and their entire planet suffered for it. **

**The Mandalorians of today seemed to have learned from the mistakes of their ancestors and are embracing a culture of peace, lead by Duke Kryze of Mandalore. Although I have heard that Mandalorian extremists, obsessed with the warrior past, have made attempts on his life, Caldor Riu being one of them. **

**This obsession with war is one aspect I shall never understand. War is a plague that destroys societies and brings only chaos and destruction. **

**I truly believe that those who are foolishly coerced into war have already lost. **

"Master Windu," Jax's voice rang over the intercom. "We seem to have a situation in the main hold. Zoraa's checking it out, mind giving her some back up?"

Mace switched off the recorder. "What kind of situation?"

"One of the crates seems to be moving," Jax said.

"How far are we from Irragaten?" Mace asked as he pulled back his hood.

"Once we jump out of hyperspace it should be just a couple of clicks away. Why? Getting cold feet?"

Mace rose from his seat. "No, it could be trap designed to activate when the ship nears the moon."

"What?" Jax said. "How would those bastards get anywhere near my ship?"

"I'm not sure. How did eight criminals sentenced to life on a prison world, get from the Outer Rim to Coruscant in a matter of hours with no notice?" Mace countered.

"Good point."

"Keep the ship on course. I will assist Zoraa."

"Aye, aye captain…" Jax said. Mace didn't need the Force to envision his sarcastic salute. But Mace paid it no mind. If it were some kind of trap, it was the opportunity he needed to test his combat abilities with the Force. To actively seek out a fight was not the Jedi way but the Jedi Master had to know where he stood with his abilities. That and if Mace had to be honest with himself, he _wanted _a fight. He had been sitting in the longue for far too long. Combat would no doubt reinvigorate his numb limbs.

Mace took a deep breath, clearing himself of such thoughts. Controlling this love for combat was the main reason he created his fighting style Vaapad in the first place. And Force or no, he would need its principles.

In the ring corridor at the center of the ship, Zoraa awaited him. Zoraa was a lime green twi'lek with the slender torso yet curved hips and long legs, many humans and humanoids found attractive. The faded slave branding on her upper arm told Mace that some Hutt in her past must have thought the same thing. Two military grade DC-17 hand blasters were strapped to her hips in addition to a DC-15x sniper rifle fastened on her back with a barrel as long as her body. Mace raised an eyebrow at her.

"Are you going to need all that?"

Zoraa shrugged. "Pays to be prepared," she said simply. "Now are you coming or are you just going to stand there admiring my guns?"

It was Mace's turn to shrug. "Your ship, you lead the way."

Zoraa turned on her heel and approached the main hold, giving Mace the full view of her decapitated lekku. Her right one had been allowed to grow fully and as standard with twi'lek adults, it reached the center of her back. The one on the left however only reached the base of her neck. From the jagged scar left behind, Mace could deduce that the cut had not been a quick one. Mace was tempted to ask who had cut her but decided against it. Even with his dulled Force ability, he could feel the bitterness, anger, and despair hidden away inside of her. If she became aware of how much he pitied her for that one moment, she would no doubt shoot him between the eyes without a second thought.

The two approached the main hold silently. Mace unfastened his lightsaber but did not ignite it. Zoraa readied her pistol as she entered the code for the hold. The door swished open and the two carefully stepped into the trapezoid shaped room.

Save for several crates the chamber was the same faded chrome as the rest of the ship. The metal crates were stacked one atop the other with no life-forms that Mace could sense. The crates were stacked in typical pyramid fashion with the longer rectangular crates at the bottom, the wider squared shaped ones in the middle, and the smaller rounder crates at the top. There were two other stacks on the opposing ends of the hold, each empty of life forces.

Mace turned to Zoraa who was kicking at one of the bottom crates. "What do you usually carry in these crates?"

"Guns, supplies, spare parts, nothing major," the twi'lek said. "Maybe someone snuck aboard. I hate stowaways," she added with a snarl.

"I don't sense any life-forms in the room."

Zoraa looked over his shoulder and aimed her blaster. "You might want to check that all seeing Force of yours again."

Mace followed her gaze and as Jax said, one of the top crates was indeed moving. The Jedi Master narrowed his eyes and ignited his lightsaber. The cylinder shaped crate bounced up and down like a wild animal trying to break free. It pushed itself forward towards the edge of the stack. Mace closed his eyes and attempted to reach out to whatever the crate contained through the Force. But only the sharp pain from the Halls of Healing responded. The master gritted his teeth and pushed through the pain. This time his senses managed to pick up on an indistinct life-force within the crate. And along with it he heard a faint grunt of frustration as the crate neared the edge.

"Whatever is inside there, we're about to find out," Zoraa said, her blaster honed onto the delinquent crate.

The round crate tumbled to the red stained floor, forcing the lid off and allowing the spiky haired youngling to somersault his way out of the confiding storage and straight into Mace's legs.

"Ow…." Kakarot groaned. "Your legs are really tough master."

Mace could feel his stomach aflame with fury. The passion boiled in his belly like an erupting volcano on Mustafar. Was this youngling hearing impaired somehow? Or did having his hair in that fashion caused some type of brain damage? Regardless no youngling had ever gotten Mace to this point of rage. The master had to step back and recite the Jedi code forty-seven times to revert back to his calm state. But even with that, Mace could still feel the anger within him.

"What is that?" Zoraa asked from behind him.

"A youngling in a great deal of trouble," Mace said, his eyes boring into the monkey tailed child, who merely gave him a toothy grin in response.

"Not the kid!" Zoraa exclaimed.

Mace immediately looked up to see all the three base crates in the chamber quaking as if there was somehow an earthquake in deep space. The master immediately ignited his lightsaber as the lids of the three crates flew off, allowing six sentinel droids to rise out of their dormancy. The ocular receptors of their helmets flashed red as their targeting programs locked onto the three bewildered organics.

The six droids raised their blasters and uttered a single phrase,

"Threat detected."


End file.
